Not To Be a Buzzkill, But Your Eyes May Be Messed Up
Do you love gaming as much as we do? Are you spending hours every day (or week!) in front of a screen? Chances are that the amount of time you’re spending looking at the television or monitor is causing damage to your eyes. This damage can lead to eye symptoms such as double vision and blurring. We’re not trying to scare you, but give you the facts. In 2016 it was estimated that over 70 percent of people who find themselves in front a screen daily for extensive periods of time suffer from some sort of eye issue (also known as computer vision syndrome).
There’s a few reasons why gamers are at risk for developing vision issues from long-term screen use.
1) The text that you read on a printed paper or book has sharply defined edges, but those on a screen are made of pixels. These pixelated characters have blurred edges (ever so slightly), and can make it difficult for our eyes to focus. In an attempt to focus the blurred edges our eyes can be strained and become fatigued.
2) Unconsciously while gaming for long periods of time people don’t blink. You can’t blink when you’re anticipating an enemy coming around the corner. On average a person blinks 17 plus times a minute. Those on a computer are blinking approximately 12-15 times a minute. The lower blink rate causes eyes to dry out, and can cause irritation.
3) Screen glare causes our eyes to strain and can be harsh on our poor eyeballs.
We found most of this information and more from this well researched study on Computer Eye Strain (it’s a bit dense, but informative!).
How Will Gaming Glasses Help?
First off – if you’re not suffering from eye problems than you don’t necessarily need a pair of these. If at the end of the day your eyes aren’t exhausted, if you’re not dealing with blurriness or double vision than hear us out – then you probably don’t need a pair.
While looking at a screen your eyes sweep from one side of the screen to the other and eyewear limits this range. The edges of the frame limit this motion and may hinder people who are not actually getting any benefit from wearing the glasses. If you’re worried that your excessive screen viewing is going to lead to eye issues than you can get yourself a pair of gaming glasses/
If you’re suffering from eye issues gaming glasses are worth it.
There are studies and many user reviews that share that gaming glasses can be used to protect your eyes and reduce computer vision syndrome symptoms. Gaming glasses can prevent headaches brought on by screen glare. Most of the gaming glasses have frames that are amber colored so that the contrast of the screen is increased. This increased contrast can help reduce eye strain. In addition, gaming glasses are anti-reflective allowing even more protection for your eyes. Lastly, many of the gaming glasses on the market are water/dust repellant and scratch resistant.
The benefits of wearing gaming glasses are that they can help reduce eyestrain, headaches, and dry eyes. Gaming glasses aren’t for everyone, but if you’re suffering from these conditions and you believe that they’re the result of massive gaming you should get a pair.
One of the interesting finds while researching gaming glasses is that they can help you sleep better. They do this by reducing the amount of blue light your eye captures while looking at digital screens. Blue light causes our bodies to be more alert and boosts our mood. This is great during the day, but not helpful to getting sleep. By reducing blue light our bodies will be more likely to fall asleep quicker.
The Best Gaming Glasses
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- Blocks 65% of harmful Blue Light
- High Quality Material
- Blocks UV Light
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- Good Price
- Get’s the job done.
- Lightweight
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- Not Stylish
- Dirt Cheap
- Get’s the job done.
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Four Great Pairs of Gaming Glasses
Gunnar Intercept Gaming Glasses
Gunnar Optiks creates quality, name brand products and their Intercept gaming glasses are no exception. The top features of these gaming glasses is that they’re designed to limit air current near the eye which increases humidity, and will help prevent eye irritation. They have a slight magnification to them which helps ease eye strain. Lastly they filter blue light and block UV to help enhance the contrast of the screen. The glasses are coated to reduce glare and reflective light to eliminate eye stress.
They’re widely praised on Amazon. They’re not the cheapest of the three glasses, but they’re worth their value. The one complaint against the Gunnar Optics Intercept Gaming Glasses is that they’re not smudge resistant. You may think about purchasing a small micro fiber rag to wipe smudges off. We forgot to mention this earlier, but the yellow tint does take some getting used to. You won’t be able to enjoy the colors of the game like you used to, but your eyes will thank you for it.
Check out the Gunnar Intercept Gaming Glasses on Amazon!
J+S Vision Blue Light Shield
These are a more budget friendly pair of gaming glasses. The frame is made of a lightweight plastic and has rectangular lenses. The large frames are suitable for both men and women and allow for a large field of vision. These gaming glasses are not as heavily tinted as others which is done to provide a balance between eye protection and viewing quality.
Similar to the other glasses they’ll block out most of the blue light that is harmful for our eyes. This pair of glasses does not have any magnification to them.
For the price, this is a great pair of gaming glasses. They’ll help reduce headaches, eye strain, and allow you to sleep better. People rave about these glasses in the amazon reviews. The only downfall is that they are a bit less sturdy than the more expensive pairs of gaming glasses. As long as you’re extra careful this shouldn’t be a problem.
Look at the J+S Gaming Glasses on Amazon
Game King Classic Clip On Gaming Glasses
These clip-on glasses are made to be easily clipped onto your regular glasses. For all you gamers who wear prescription glasses these can be easily attached to the glasses you normally wear. They have the same features as many of the other recommendations. You can expect these clip-on glasses to block blue light, protect against UV radiation, improve the contrast, and reduce the glare. We’d recommend these if you’ve already got a great pair of prescription glasses, and just need some extra protection for gaming.
Get Yourself a Pair of Clip-On Gaming Glasses on Amazon
The “I don’t care what I look like” Gaming Glasses
These bad boys will give you all the protection your eyes need from gaming, but they’re cheap as dirt. Looking for budget gaming glasses? These are it. They’ll keep your eyes nice and safe, but they don’t look cool. They’re made of cheap plastic and feel flimsy. The best part of these glasses is that they’ll get the job done. Other than that, we don’t have much to say about them.
Get these Budget Gaming Glasses on Amazon
Are gamers the only one who can benefit from gaming glasses?
Honestly, if you spend a lot of time looking at a screen AND you’re experiencing issues because of it you could benefit from a pair of gaming glasses. Our very own Gimmick spends lots of time editing our Hey You Video Game videos and uses a pair of glasses to ease eye strain. If you’re a video editor, graphic designer, or office worker there’s a good chance that you would greatly benefit from a pair of gaming glasses.
The Conclusion
Lastly, if you’re having serious eye issues you should consult an optometrist. It would be a shame to ruin your eyes all for the sake of a long Minecraft session. Take care of yourself! Is there a pair of computer glasses that you’d recommend? Do you wear gaming glasses? How have they helped you?
Share your experiences, questions, and comments below! Thanks for reading.
