Eye Drops For Gamers | Are They Necessary?

One thing I know for sure is after a long weekend of playing warzone pretty much all day from Friday night to Sunday evening can sometimes cause our eyes to get pretty sore. This makes one wonder about what can video games do to your eyes. For this reason I think it is important to know how to protect your eyes while gaming.

This brings up the question, how do we prevent this?

More specifically, should gamers use eye drops? Are they even necessary? Eyedrops aren’t necessary for every gamer, but they can be very helpful for those dealing with dry eyes while gaming. This is because one of the most common side effects of playing games is dry eyes.

There is a lot more to this question than what I can just fit into a short answer.

In this article, we are going to take an in-depth look at why you should use eye drops and what other measures you can take to protect your eyes so that gaming is actually more enjoyable because you don’t have to worry about negative side effects.

Can Gaming Ruin Your Eyes?

Most of us have been told from childhood that sitting too close to the TV can damage our eyes. Likewise, we have been told that if we play video games we are also damaging our eyes.

The question is, how true is this? Does gaming really damage our eyes? Let’s jump in and take a look.

Playing games for extended periods of time can definitely have some negative effects on our eyes. So if you have been trying to figure out can playing video games damage your eyes it is clear that some effects are noted

We will often feel this especially when we are trying to go to bed. Your eyes will feel strained and fatigued. Another negative effect that a lot of gamers do suffer from is called “dry eyes.”

I have found that it does not matter if I am using a monitor or a TV, if I don’t take a few precautions, my eyes can feel tired, dry, and strained. This is especially after a weekend of heavy gaming sessions.

Lets get into how to protect your eyes while gaming a bit more in this article.

Should Gamers Use Eye Drops?

Now that we have stated that, yes, gaming can damage your eyes, I am sure that the next question on your mind, and what should be considered the meat of this article, is, should gamers use eye drops?

Let’s take a look at this and, spoiler alert, the answer is very simple.

It does not matter if you are a hardcore gamer or a casual, there will always be those days where you might play a game for extended periods of time.

This could be because of the weather or simply because you have nothing else to do for that day.

When playing for long periods of time, you should definitely use eye drops in between gaming sessions.

The reason why eye drops are so important is because “dry eyes” is one of the most damaging effects that can happen to your eyes.

So, when you use eye drops, you basically create artificial tears and moisten up your eyes which is very important.

What Are The Safest Eye Drops To Use?

I was conflicted about how to name the section and it was between the current title and “what are drops should gamers use”.

To understand the answer, we should know what the three types of eye drops are and look at what we are trying to protect ourselves against.

Let’s first take a look at the three different types of eye drops and what they do.

• Anti-redness drops: Normally used to hide tiredness and red eyes from, well, let’s say “extracurricular” activities

• Allergy drops: As the name suggests, these are used for burning, red eyes that are caused by allergies.

• Artificial tears: Used to combat dry eyes.

As we mentioned above in the article, one of the most negative side effects of long gaming sessions is dry eyes. So, judging by the list above and by the negative effect, we can deduce that using artificial tears is the best eye drops for gamers to use.

Keeping your eyes moist will help combat the other side effects such as fatigue and strain so if you are going out to get yourself eye drops for your gaming sessions, I recommend getting artificial tears.

How Gamers Protect Their Eyes: Top 6 Ways

Now that we have established that you should use eye drops, I think it is important for us to take a look at how gamers can protect their eyes and I’ve actually decided to turn this into a top 6 list. So, here are my top 6 ways that gamers can protect their eyes.

1. Use Eye Drops

2. Take a break every 30 to 45 minutes.

3. Use “Eyecare mode” if available.

4. Use monitor glasses.

5. Don’t sit too close if using a TV.

6. Make sure your room is lit properly

Taking a break is extremely important, not only for your eyes but, also to give your brain a rest.

During these short 5 to 10 minute breaks, you should stretch as much as you can to avoid developing a slouched back. It is also the perfect time to monitor whether or not you are suffering from dry eyes and to put some eyedrops in.

A lot of monitors and TVs come with eye care modes. If you notice that your eyes are taking more and more strain, perhaps activating these modes would be in your best interest.

When buying a monitor, you should look for one that says it is “flicker-free” because that just means less strain on your eyes.

A lot of gamers alos notice a big difference upgrading to 144hz from 60hz monitors. For myself personally, once I switched to 144hz I stopped needing my glasses to game.

Being told to not sit too close to the TV can be difficult, especially if you are using a monitor. One of the best things you can do in this situation is to use Eyecare glasses and we actually have an article on this very subject which you can find here.

Finally, making sure that you are playing games in a well-lit room is crucial. Now, I do understand that if you are playing horror games and games like that, you might want to play in a dark room.

However, when you can, always make sure that your room is well-lit. These are the best tips on how to protect eyes while gaming that I have found.

How Do You Get Rid Of Gamer Eyes?

So, we went pretty in-depth on how to protect your eyes while playing games but I think it is important to quickly discuss a few things that you can do if you already have “gamer eyes”.

The first thing to do is try not to look at any displays for as long as you can. This is often best done when going to bed. Put your phone down and don’t look at any monitors, TVs, or cell phones.

As soon as you wake up, first, wash your face, have a shower, eat your breakfast, and try to prolong every process before you look at your phone, monitor, or TV.

You could use eye drops again but this time, if your eyes are already hurting, instead of using artificial tears you could maybe use eye drops for allergies.

That being said, the most important thing for you to do is, as I mentioned above, don’t look at any monitors or displays a few hours before going to bed and then prolong the process until you have completed the morning routine.

Conclusion

That brings us to the end of this article and I think my final notes would be to have fun when playing games but don’t forget how to protect your eyes while gaming.

At the end of the day, I think getting eye drops it’s just one extra step that you can take to protect your eyes.

With that being said, I would say that the most important thing you can do to protect your eyes is to make sure that you take regular breaks and to have a good routine before going to bed and after waking up.

Try not to look at your phone immediately before bed or after waking up.

Continue Reading:

1. Best Standing Desks for Gamers
2. Best Gaming Glasses
3. Should Gamers & Esports Use a Standing Desk?
4. Mechanical And Non-Mechanical Keyboard Differences
5. Why Do Gamers Tilt Their Keyboard?
6. Neck Exerciser For Gamers Review