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How to stay healthy whilst working on a laptop or mobile phone

We’re all guilty of it. Working long hours on laptops and computers during the day, and then continuing into the evening and often spending time in between checking and working on our phones. I know that I certainly was guilty of that when I worked in advertising, and still very much do the same now that I’m working as a blogger and social media manager. There is simply no getting away from it. However there are some top tips that you can take on board to help yourself stay healthy whilst working on a laptop or mobile phone.

Set your working hours

If you’re working from home or prone to working late into the evening it’s really important to set your working hours. It’s all too easy to fall into the trap of working all hours of the day. This is not practical, bad for your health and will ultimately lead to being less productive.

Instead have set working hours. This is often easier if you work outside the home where you have set or flexible office hours, but if you work from home set your own working hours. This will need to be away from the family, and any distractions. Plus remember it’s your working day so don’t be tempted to do the dishes or put the washing on, you wouldn’t be doing that if you worked in an office. If you need to work in the evening try to limit this to 1 or 2 hours, so that your brain isn’t still thinking about work when you’re trying to go to sleep.

Take regular breaks

Just like setting your working hours you will need to take regular breaks. It’s known to be bad for your eyes, motivation and productivity to spend hours and hours each day slaving over the laptop. So make sure you take 10 – 15 minutes in the morning and afternoon to make yourself a cup of tea and a snack, and to spend at least 30 minutes having lunch away from your laptop. I know it’s easier said than done especially if you’re busy, however you will feel so much more refreshed and refocused if you take that much needed break.

Cup of coffee

Limit the time that you spend on your phone in the evening

With everything being at our finger tips from social media to emails it’s really easy to spend our entire evening on our smartphones. I think that the average person checks their phone over 150 times a day…..which is crazy. I know all too well how guilty I am of this, and it’s something that I need to to change. If you’ve already spent the entire day at a computer then it’s best to spend the evening having a nice dinner, talking to your partner, or spending time with your children. There’s nothing that super urgent on your smartphone that can’t wait until tomorrow, unless you get a important phone call then you know that something is urgent.

Use a blue light screen protector

If you do spend hours a day working then consider getting a blue light filter for your laptop from OcuShield. Blue light is known to cause eye strain and fatigue, and could lead to long-tern vision deterioration. By using a blue light filter this will block out the harmful blue light, but will not compromise the clear picture of your screen, plus you wouldn’t even know it was there. This ultimately will protect your eyes from any long-term damage and allow you to have a peaceful night’s sleep which is ideal for anyone working long hours or have a busy day ahead of them with the family.

Eye image

Sit comfortably

Lastly are you sitting comfortably? Make sure you have a good desk chair and a clear area to work. If you’re spending all day at a desk ask yourself the following questions? Is my computer or laptop at the right height for me? Can I easily reach my keyboard without straining? If you work in an office you might be able to have someone check these out for you. If you work from home just make sure that you’re comfortable, and if you want a change of scene then feel free to move from room to room. A change of environment is great to helping productivity and motivation, plus it’s a little break as well.

So those are my top tips for how to stay healthy whilst working on a laptop or mobile phone. Do you often use one of these devices and do you have any tricks of your own for keeping healthy?

Claire x

This is collaborative post with OcuShield

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