Low Vision Lighting - Computer
by Dori
(United States)
The question I would be most interested in is computer lighting.
I have a new 27 iMac and have done a lot with screen brightness etc. but wonder where the lighting should come from as I work at the screen.
Right now, I have overhead recessed lighting that seems too strong but then when I dim it, it isn't enough for anyone and seems to create glare and reflection of other objects in the room.
Opening the blinds doesn't work because of the glare issue. I have been wondering if I should have a task light below eye level at the computer? Do you have any info on that?
Reply
Dori, yes, try using a task light by your computer. Normally the recommendation for using task lighting is to get a gooseneck or swing arm lamp.
Place the task lamp so that the light is coming from the side, rather than in front of you. Play around with adjusting the swing arm or gooseneck lamp so that the light is not bouncing back up into your eyes - which is what happens if you place the light right in front of you.
Try using the maximum brightness or wattage for that particular lamp (do not use more than the recommended wattage for safety reasons).
Let me know how this works for you.
Leslie Degner, RN, BSN
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Fluorescent Lighting and Macular Degeneration
by Elizabeth
(NSW, Australia)
Hello,
I am 50 years of age. I have not as yet been diagnosed with Macular Degeeneration however I have been warned that there are signs in one eye by my eye specialist. My mother has the wet type and my brother has just been confirmed.
I am aware of a number of precautions in eye care but I am not able to find information on a particular issue at work. I work with a computer in an open office. I am next to natural lighting from a window which is great. There is also florescent lights on permanently over head and of course I am looking into the computer all day. I am worried about the amount of light that I am exposing my eyes too, in particular the fluro. lights which are positioned in long banks on our low ceilings. When I sit at my computer I am looking both at the bank of fluro lights which start 3 meters in front of me (so directly in or to the side of my direct line of view depending on where I can move my computer), and my computer screen and then with the light from outside flowing in at the side.
I have had the floru tubes from the two lights over my head removed but I am troubled by having to look at a bank of flurescent lights starting just 3 metres from my face as well as my computer screen all day. (We are not permitted to have partitions that would screen us from these lights as it is an open plan office.) I would appreciate anything that would help me to sort this issue and that I can show to my work place.
I also have noticed quite a drastic drop in my short distance sight and am now wearing glasses to read (only to be expected at my age I know) in the last two years since moving to this office.
Thank you
REPLY
Hi Elizabeth,
Dan Roberts writes the most comprehensive article on artificial lighting and macular degeneration. Here is the link:
Artificial Lighting and the Blue Light Hazard
Kind Regards,
Leslie Degner, RN, BSN
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Lighting for Macular Degeneration
by Theresa
(United States)
What kind of light bulb/lamp shall I get my mom who has dry macular degeneration....so she can read a bit....she can see well in daylight...glare bothers her, etc.
Thanks so much.
I want to purchase bulbs/lamps, etc. for her.
Thanks
Be good to yourself.
Theresa
REPLY
For reading it is best to get a floor lamp that can be adjusted and positioned so that the light is directed over the shoulder of the better eye.
Many people prefer LED lights for reading as it casts less shadows and provides a brighter light.
Depending on your mother's vision loss, there are floor lamps that are lighted full page magnifiers that provide light and magnification for reading books, magazines and newspapers.
To see this type of lighted magnifier click here:
Full Page Magnifier
Kind Regards,
Leslie Degner, RN, BSN
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Is Cool White Lighting and LED lighting good for AMD sufferers?
by Goncal
(Spain)
Thank you for your Website which is of great help to all of us suffering from AMD.
I am 79 and suffering from AMD. I have read in your Website http://www.webrn-maculardegeneration.com/low-vision-lighting-2.html that LED lamps and cool white fluorescent lighting help vision.
However I have also read about "blue light hazard" and how it may lead to AMD.
Should I use LED lamps and cool fluorescent lighting at home? Thanks so much in advance.
Reply
Thank you Goncal for this excellent question to a confusing topic. Providing better and brighter lighting is important for those with macular degeneration. Yet, some of the recommended low vision lighting does expose users to some of the blue light spectrum.
Dan Roberts, the author of The First Year: Age-Related Macular Degeneration: An Essential Guide for the Newly Diagnosed
has an excellent article on this topic. He writes on this topic at www.MDSupport.org:
"The amount of harm from an LED, like any other lamp, is determined by the built-in protection of the product, in combination with reasonable precautions taken by the viewer.
Specific to LEDs, the wider the field of light (i.e. size of the illumination source) and the brighter (higher luminance) of that source, the more potential risk it carries for the retina.
Proximity to the light source is also a consideration. One should not, for example, gaze up close into a light box of blue (or even white) LEDs for longer than 100 seconds (the maximum recommendation from the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection).
On the other hand, a small array of white LEDs (which contain some of the blue spectrum) in a lamp used for task lighting would probably cause little problem."
To learn more about low vision lighting go to:
Low Vision Lighting
Hope this helps.
Leslie Degner, RN, BSN
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Lighting and New Glasses
by Jackie
(Lansing, MI)
Can a new eyeglass lens help me to see better? And is it normal for someone to need bright lights on in the house on a sunny day with this disease?
Hi Jackie,
Be sure to ask your eye care provider to be sure that your eye prescription is current or if it does need to be modified. However, as one's macular degeneration progresses, there comes a time when changing eye prescriptions no longer helps.
Depending on the stage of your macular degeneration, you may have what is called low vision.
Low vision is visual impairment that cannot be corrected by:
glasses,
surgery or
medical treatment.
This person still has some usable vision that with training, macular degeneration aids and magnifiers can continue to do many of the activities they enjoyed before. This is when you need to see a low vision specialist who can assist you with the best visual aids for you.
Lighting needs change as AMD progresses. You will need more light and better lighting. So needing bright lights on a sunny day is normal.
The right lighting can make a big difference in your ability to read, enjoy a magazine or perform a hobby. To learn about different types of lighting that improves your ability to see click here:
low vision lighting
Leslie Degner, RN, BSN
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