我们都依附于某个小工具或另一个。您可能是平板电脑用户(tablet owner)，有不健康的视频播放习惯。24-7 触手可及的键盘的工作狂。或者，您可能是那些拥有大量应用程序（以及要征服的排行榜）的智能手机用户之一。
但这种生活方式既有趣又方便(fun and convenient)——不值得失去你的视力。80% of American adults每天使用数字设备的时间超过两个小时，这是一个真正令人担忧的问题。多达 67% 的人甚至同时使用两台设备。反过来，研究表明 32% 的人报告有眼睛疲劳(eye strain)，另有 27% 的人目睹眼睛干涩、头痛和视力模糊。
那么你能做些什么来防止这种情况发生呢？您可以在计算机、平板电脑和智能手机上使用以下几个免费应用程序来减轻数字眼睛疲劳(eye strain)，并有望改善您的睡眠(hopefully improve your sleep too)。
通量(f.lux )(f.lux )
减少眼睛疲劳(eye strain)的关键是消除数字屏幕上的蓝光。除非您购买物理屏幕或眼镜(screen or glasses)，否则您将需要像f.lux这样的应用程序来为您着色。
f.lux 的优点在于您不必对设置做太多事情。只需将其设置为推荐颜色(Recommended Colors)，输入您的邮政编码(zip code)，剩下的就交给它了。它使用您的位置来确定一天中的时间和亮度(day and brightness)，以便为您调整设置。
当太阳落山并接近您的就寝时间时，该应用程序将使您的屏幕变得越来越暗。(screen darker and darker)但别担心，你仍然可以看到——它是一种黄橙色。你可以选择你的起床时间，这样它就会适当地为屏幕着色，这样你的大脑(brain isn)就不会受到蓝光的影响。
当您的眼睛看到蓝光时，您的大脑会认为是白天。因此，睡前使用数字设备会打断你的昼夜节律，(cycle and prevent)让你无法睡个好觉。
f.lux 还附带其他设置，您可以自行调整。例如，您可以选择在当天早些时候使屏幕变暗。您还可以根据自己的目标选择预设。
例如，您可以选择以下任何一种来减轻眼睛疲劳(eye strain)：
- 减轻眼睛疲劳。
- 经典通量。
- 工作到很晚。
- 远离赤道。
- 石洞壁画。
- 颜色保真度。
玩弄设置，看看最适合您的设置。
另一个好处是它会自动检测您何时使用需要蓝光的应用程序，例如YouTube。
您可以将此应用程序下载到您的 PC、Mac、Linux或 iPhone。有一个适用于Android(Android)的预览版/仅限根用户的版本，这引起了很多关于故障的批评。另外，它自 2016 年以来一直没有更新，因此我们不建议下载此版本。
暮(Twilight)(Twilight)
如果您是Android 用户(Android user)，则可以将Twilight下载到您的设备。这获得了令人印象深刻的评论，并且类似于 f.lux。它的设计还可以保持您的昼夜节律循环效率和(cycle efficient and quality)睡眠质量。
它使用您的位置来查找日出和日落时间，以确定何时为您的屏幕着色。此外，当您使用Netflix 或 YouTube(Netflix or YouTube)等需要良好照明的应用程序时，您可以禁用它。
它带有您可以操作的设置，例如色温(color temperature)、强度和屏幕暗淡。然后，您可以决定何时打开过滤器 - 日期、时间和自定义选项可用。此外，您可以创建在指定时间自动开启的日程配置文件，例如睡前阅读(bedtime reading)、加班等。
还有暂停或停止它的选项。
意识(Awareness)(Awareness)
有时，了解您在设备上投入了多少屏幕时间(screen time)可以帮助您改变习惯以减少眼睛疲劳(eye strain)。Aware是一款应用程序，可以跟踪您积极使用计算机的时间。
与类似的应用程序不同，它不是侵入性的，并且不会在特定时间（或时间限制(time limit)）后将您锁定。并且它不会带有会吓到或打断他人的烦人警报。
那么它对你有什么帮助呢？它只是跟踪您在设备上花费的时间。你可以自己检查一下，看看你是否超过了你设置的限制。它静静地坐在菜单栏中(menu bar)。
也许它会激励你下车，在现实世界中花 30 分钟左右的时间。如果这听起来不错，那么您可以将其下载到您的Mac 计算机上(Mac computer)。
暂停(Time Out)(Time Out)
也许你没有那么自律，需要一些可以“让”你休息的东西。如果是这样，Time Out是适合您的应用程序。它仅适用于Mac用户，并且在破坏您的数字会话方面做得非常出色。
有些人可能不喜欢这样，所以当你知道你需要在一个街区集中几个小时时，请确保它没有打开。
那么它是如何运作的呢？当您激活它时，它允许您以 50 分钟为单位工作。然后，一旦您达到 50 分钟标记，您的屏幕就会被阻止 10 分钟。屏幕会显示应用程序徽标(app logo)和计时器倒计时(timer countdown)。这些小休息有助于确保您的眼睛得到适当的休息。
还可以选择进行微中断，即每 10 分钟屏幕被阻塞 10 秒。但这对某些人来说可能有点过分。
然后它会提醒您纠正姿势并放松肌肉。
当然，您可以随时禁用该应用程序（即使您的屏幕被屏蔽了一段时间）。您还可以使用自定义功能来选择哪些应用程序禁用超时(Time Out)，以便您可以不间断地查看它们。
保护你的视力(ProtectYourVision)(ProtectYourVision)
现在，如果您使用的是Windows 计算机(Windows computer)并且需要一些东西来确保您定期休息，那么ProtectYourVision是一个最佳选择。但它并没有与您的 PC 绑定，而是在您的Internet 浏览器(internet browser)中。它适用于Chrome、Safari和Firefox。
它带有一个默认的 20-20-20 计划，您可以根据自己的喜好进行自定义。当您需要休息时，它会发出哔哔声，然后暂时关闭您的屏幕。
中断可能是有用的，但有时会令人恼火。因此，您可以随时选择退出休息时间。这样，您可以决定何时黑屏。
该应用程序还提供了您可以在休息时进行的眼保健操。如果您使用很多Google 应用程序(Google apps)，那么您可以学习如何启用暗模式。
Protect Your Eyes While You Work, Watch, & Play!
没有人准备好用他们的数字设备去冷火鸡。所以接下来最好的事情就是想办法减轻眼睛疲劳(eye strain)。
使用这些应用程序，您可以确保在工作、观看视频和玩游戏时让您的眼睛得到所需的休息。
5 Free Apps To Reduce Digital Eye Strain & Improve Your Sleep
We’re all аttached to some gadget or another. You may be a tablet owner with unhealthy video binging habits. A workaholic who has a keyboard аt your fingertips 24-7. Or you could be one of those smartphone users with gigs υpon gigs of apps (and leaderboards to conquer).
But as fun and convenient as this lifestyle is – it’s not worth losing your eyesight over. With 80% of American adults using digital devices for more than two hours daily, this is a real concern. As much as 67% are even using two devices at once. In turn, studies show 32% of people report experiencing eye strain, and another 27% are witnessing dry eyes, headaches, and blurred vision.
So what can you do to prevent this? Here are several free apps you can use on your computer, tablet, and smartphone to reduce digital eye strain and hopefully improve your sleep too.
The key to reducing eye strain is to eliminate blue light from your digital screen. Unless you purchase a physical screen or glasses, you’re going to need an app like f.lux to tint it for you.
What’s great about f.lux is that you don’t have to do much to the settings. Just set it to Recommended Colors, type in your zip code, and it’ll take care of the rest. It uses your location to determine the time of day and brightness so it can adjust the settings for you.
The app will tint your screen darker and darker as the sun sets and nears your bedtime. But don’t worry, you can still see – it’s a yellowish-orange tint. You can select your wake up time, so it’ll tint the screen appropriately so that your brain isn’t affected by the blue light.
When your eyes see blue light, your mind thinks it’s daytime. So using digital devices before bed can interrupt your circadian cycle and prevent you from getting a good night’s sleep.
f.lux also comes with other settings you can tweak yourself. For instance, you can choose to darken the screen earlier in the day. There are also presets you can choose based on your goals.
For example, you can choose between any of the following to reduce eye strain:
- Reduce eyestrain.
- Classic f.lux.
- Working late.
- Far from the equator.
- Cave painting.
- Color fidelity.
Play around with the settings to see what works best for you.
Another upside is that it automatically detects when you’re using apps that require blue light, such as YouTube.
You can download this app to your PC, Mac, Linux, or iPhone. There’s a preview/root-only version for Android, which is getting a lot of flack about glitches. Plus, it hasn’t been updated since 2016, so we wouldn’t recommend downloading this version.
If you’re an Android user, then you can download Twilight to your device. This is getting impressive reviews and is similar to f.lux. Its design also works to keep your circadian cycle efficient and quality of sleep existent.
It uses your location to look up sunrise and sunset times to determine when to tint your screen. Also, you can disable it when you’re using apps like Netflix or YouTube that require good lighting to enjoy.
It comes with settings you can manipulate, such as color temperature, intensity, and screen dim. Then you can decide when you want the filter to turn on – days, time, and custom options are available. Plus, you can create schedule profiles that automatically turn on at your specified time, such as for bedtime reading, working late, and so on.
There’s also the option to pause or stop it.
Sometimes, knowing how much screen time you’re putting into your devices can help you change your habits to reduce eye strain. Aware is an app that keeps track of how long you’re actively using your computer.
Unlike similar apps, it’s not intrusive and doesn’t lock you out after a particular time (or time limit). And it doesn’t come with an annoying alarm that can scare or interrupt others.
So how does it help you? It simply keeps track of the time you spend on your device. You can check it yourself to see if you’re over the limit you’ve set. It sits quietly in the menu bar.
Maybe it’ll motivate you to get off and spend time in the real world for 30 minutes or so. If this sounds good, then you can download it to your Mac computer.
Maybe you’re not that disciplined and need something that can “make” you take a break. If so, Time Out is the app for you. It’s only available for Mac users and it does an excellent job of disrupting your digital sessions.
Some people may not like this, so be sure it’s not turned on when you know you need hours of focus in one block.
So how does it operate? When you activate it, it allows you to work in blocks of 50 minutes. Then once you hit the 50-minute mark, your screen is blocked for 10 minutes. A screen shows up with the app logo and a timer countdown. These mini-breaks can help ensure your eyes get proper rest.
There’s also the option to do micro-breaks, where the screen is blocked for 10 seconds every 10 minutes. But this may be a bit much for some.
Then it gives you reminders to correct your posture and relax your muscles.
Of course, you can disable the app at anytime (even when your screen is blocked for a time out). There are also customization features you can use to choose which apps disable Time Out so you can view them without interruption.
Now, if you’re using a Windows computer and need something to ensure you take regular time outs, then ProtectYourVision is an optimal choice. But rather than being tied to your PC, it’s in your internet browser. It works with Chrome, Safari, and Firefox.
It comes with a default 20-20-20 plan, which you can customize to your liking. When it’s time for you to take a break, it beeps and then it blacks out your screen temporarily.
The disruption can be useful, but irritating at times. So you can choose to opt-out of the break at any time. This way, you can decide when the screen blacks out.
The app also provides eye exercises you can do while on your break. If you use a lot of Google apps, then you can learn how to enable dark mode.
Protect Your Eyes While You Work, Watch, & Play!
No one’s ready to go cold turkey with their digital devices. So the next best thing is to find ways to reduce eye strain.
With these apps, you can ensure you’re giving your eyes the break they need while you work, watch videos, and play games.
