Students have a certain schedule for what they do every single day and how they like to do it. Since we have all gone virtual, kids are starting to spend too much time on a computer and staring at a screen. How does staring at a screen all day affect us?

Let’s start by saying an average person spends seven hours a day on some type of electronic, whether it is from your phone, computer, or even a tv. With school being virtual this is not helping our health. 

Staring at your computer screens is very bad for you, and it can actually lead to vision syndrome. “It’s most prevalent with computers, and typically occurs when looking at a screen at arms length or closer,” Dr. Matthew Gardiner said.

Something that can help us when we have to stare at a screen for so long is to blink. “When you look at a screen, you’re so involved that you forget to blink,” he explains. I know it sounds crazy that you could forget to blink but just think about it, if you are distracted, you focus more on what your time on whatever the distraction is. 

If you are constantly looking at some sort of screen all day it could ruin your eyesight. “Chances are, if you spend more than seven hours per day staring at a monitor, you’re probably going to have problems with your eyes down the road ,” Joshua Filmer said. 

Most students are up throughout the night pretty late working on homework. It is actually almost worse to work on homework in the dark then to stare at it all day. “Regardless of whether it’s a book, a smartphone, or even a computer or television screen, it all boils down to the idea that staring at a small area at a moderate to very close distance for an extended period of time, without adequate lighting, will strain your eyes and cause your eyesight to deteriorate faster than it normally would,” Nicky Ryan stated.

Students spend way too much time on a computer looking at the screen as it is, but if they get a lot of homework they have to finish it. It is important to get good grades and do well in school, but for middle and high schools students the only way to get everything done is by having to use a computer. If students work all day they have all night to get their homework finished. However, I feel that most of them do it late at night, in their rooms, with the lights off. 

Electronic devices also make it harder for students to fall asleep at night. Do you ever notice how you are trying to fall asleep so your first thought is to get on your phone? However, that actually makes it worse sometimes. It can actually make it to where it is harder for you to fall asleep. Electronic’s right before bed isn’t the best choice ever, especially since we get up the next morning and go straight to our chromebooks. 

Electronic devices are not good for your health and can make problems for you later down the road. It’s even harder to try and stay off them since we have to be on our chromebooks for school.