Staring at bright screens all day can harm your eyes and body in several ways, whether you’re looking at computer screens, televisions, or, yes, smartphone screens. This can lead to what’s called computer vision syndrome (CVS) or digital eye strain, caused by things like reduced blinking and frequent refocusing as your eyes scan the content on the screen. CVS can lead to symptoms such as blurred vision, headaches, irritated eyes, fatigue, etc.
Poor posture is another concern with long-term screen use; Straining your neck to look at a monitor mounted too low or too high is a common posture problem, as is looking at a smartphone screen. Positioning a monitor too close or too far from the eyes is one of the biggest monitor placement mistakes made by almost everyone. However, maintaining a good distance from screens is crucial to combating CVS, and that extends to your phone. Since phone screens are much smaller than monitors, how far should they actually be from your eyes?
The American Optometric Association recommends keeping digital devices between 13 and 20 inches from your face (via 20/20), or about an arm’s length. However, smartphones and tablets are typically held 12 inches from the face. Ultimately, if you want to reduce or prevent symptoms of digital eye strain, you need to increase the smartphone viewing distance well beyond the typical 12 inches. Apple even launched a Screen Distance feature in iOS 17 and iPadOS 17 that alerts you when it detects that your screen is too close to your face.
Posture is also important
While distance from the screen is an important factor in mediating CVS, along with appropriate ambient lighting in your environment, so is your posture. In fact, posture is just as important to consider as distance from the screen, whether you’re looking at a TV, computer monitor, laptop, or smartphone. There are many reasons why you may sit poorly at your desk, such as not maintaining an upright posture or sitting for too long. But even if you’re not at a desk, you need to practice good posture when looking at other devices, especially smartphones and tablets. Otherwise, you might experience something called tech neck.
Tech Neck is a form of chronic neck pain or pain that results from staring at your phone at 45 degrees for extended periods of time. When you crane your neck in this way, it can create pressure on both your neck and spine, forcing the neck muscles to contract and the shoulder muscles to sag, leading to pain and stiffness. Holding your phone in front of you at arm’s length (rather than under your eyes) can both reduce tech neck and ease eye strain. If you have trouble keeping your phone propped up, you can stack pillows on your knees to support your forearms. Additionally, sitting up straight with your head, hips, and spine perfectly aligned helps reduce pressure.
If you don’t want to hold your phone, using a raised stand is a good solution. Laptop stands sometimes come with a phone insert or can be used with the phones and tablets themselves. You can also find vertical phone holders that work with almost all smartphones. If you want a more versatile option, you can purchase a flexible smartphone holder arm that can attach to tables, desks, and other surfaces, while keeping your phone in place on a mount that you can articulate for optimal comfort.
