How many hours do you spend on various screens per day and how does that affect your eye sight?
Although there is no consensus of how much screen time is “healthy” for adults or kids, most ophthalmologists and researchers recommend not spending more than 2 hours per day on technology devices/ television.
Excessive screen time can cause eye damage, mostly due to strain, resulting it eye irritation, dryness, headaches, fatigue or blurred vision. It can also affect posture and mood. What can you do about it?
⏱️ Set timers for yourself at intervals that work for you, and set reminders for when you should tune off of social media or shut the TV off.
📱 Use the screen time setting on your Apple device. The settings let you limit your access to various apps based on time of day or time of usage.
👀 Take an eye break. Every 20 minutes or so, look away from screens and try to focus on something more distant. Taking a walk to grab a glass of water, or looking out the window are great alternatives.
📺 Don’t watch TV or movies in bed and avoid looking at your phone screen right before bed.
Not all vision is 2020 – February is Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) awareness month.
AMD is the leading cause of vision loss among people 50 years of age and older in the United States. What is AMD really like and what does vision typically look like with this condition? Watch this brief video to find out!
Thinking about lunch? Here’s a tasty recipe from this week’s Healthy Options Class:
‘Creamy’ Tuna Casserole with Peas
★★★★★
Pasta & Noodles, VLA
Servings: Serves 4
INGREDIENTS: 6 ounces uncooked no-yolk whole wheategg noodles, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, 1 cup finely chopped onion, 1 cup thinly sliced celery, 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, 2 1/4 cups 1% low-fat milk, 1/2 cup frozen green peas, thawed; 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind, 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon dry mustard (such as Colman’s), 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, 2 (5-ounce) can solid white albacore tuna packed in water, drained and broken into chunks, 1/4 cup whole-wheat panko (Japanese breadcrumbs), 1.5 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1/3 cup)
EQUIPMENT:
Electric skillet and baking pan OR large ovenproof skillet, measuring spoons and cups, Vegetable chopper, Can opener, Colander, Lemon squeezer, Grater for lemon peel, Scissors
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat broiler to low. Fill a large saucepan with water; bring to a boil. Add noodles; cook 3 minutes or until al dente. Drain.
Heat electric skillet OR 10-inch ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add oil and butter; swirl until butter melts. Add onion and celery; sauté 6 minutes or until tender. Sprinkle flour over pan; cook 45 seconds. Add milk, stirring constantly. Stir in peas and next 7 ingredients (through tuna).
IF USING OVEN-PROOF SKILLET: Remove pan from heat; gently stir in noodles. Sprinkle breadcrumbs and cheese over top. Broil 2 minutes or until topping is lightly browned.
IF USING ELECTRIC SKILLET: Remove pan from heat; gently stir in noodles. Transfer mixture into greased baking dish. Sprinkle breadcrumbs and cheese over top. Broil 2 minutes or until topping is lightly browned.
★★★★★
Our Healthy Options class meets once weekly as part of the Health & Wellness Program with the goal of teaching our students safe ways of finding their way around a kitchen, along with learning and trying healthier food choices. Find out more about our programs by emailing our Program Manager, Linda Groszew at lgroszew@vlanj.org.
When you finish a conversation with a person who is blind, let them know when you are leaving. It’s embarrassing to realize one is talking to him- or herself.
Help them orient themselves in a room also – tell them which way a speaker, stage or podium is so they can face the speaker rather than the nearest amplifier or surface that reflects the sound.
Have you or a friend or loved one lost a significant amount of eye sight? Would you like to connect with others who have gone through similar life experiences and learn skills for maintaining your independence? Reach out to Linda Groszew, our Program Director, by emailing her at lgroszew@vlanj.org or by calling 973-627-0055 ext. 1312.
Some businesses in our community go above and beyond with their kindness. One of those is ShopRite – every week, they donate baked goods to our students for breakfast. Thank you!
Pictured (from left):
ShopRite of Parsippany Store Manager Frank Sblendorio, VLANJ student Ed Larson, and Pauly Maresits, Bakery Manager.
Ever fallen asleep with your contact lenses in? 👁️👁️
The Center for Disease Control reports that this is the most common offense for contact lens users. But what’s so bad about it anyway?
Eyes, like the rest of our bodies, need oxygen to survive, and if you have lenses in for an extended period of time, your cornea – the outer surface of your eye – doesn’t get to breathe. Without oxygen, your corneas will get larger and swell up. This is called keratitis, which means your eyes’ physiology is being damaged or altered.
This inflammation causes small gaps to start to appear across the surface of the eyes and bacteria will start to make its way through those gaps to invade the cornea.
In most cases, this leads to eye infections. In worst case scenario, it can rob you of your eye sight.
Moreover, you can damage your cornea by trying to pick out dried out lenses, and develop other long-term problems that can eventually lead to loss of sight.
Why risk it? Keep your eyes safe & take those contacts out at night.
Going out with a person who is blind or has low vision?
Let them take your arm and follow, rather than grabbing their arm and pulling them or pushing them ahead of you.
Help them feel at ease by telling them about the surroundings: the street you’re walking on, what lies beyond such as trees or bushes 🌳🌵; or when indoors – the size of the room, how many people are there and who some of them are, and so forth.
Image description: Four women are walking outside in pairs. The first pair is of a woman wth brown hair in a light blue coat, dark tights and sneakers. She is guiding a woman with light brown hair in a purple jacket, jeans and sneakers, who is holding a white cane. Behind them, in the second pair, a woman with brown hair in a ponytail is using a white cane. She is wearing a grey sweater, maroon shirt, dark pants and boots. She is guided by a woman with blonde-gray hair, who is wearing a red sweater, blue flower-patterned shirt, jeans, and sneakers.
Shout out to Panera Bread for having an accessible ordering system!
The self-service ordering stations feature both Braille and VoiceOver, which make ordering simpler for people who have low vision or are blind.
Well done, Panera Bread. 👏 We’re always happy to see such excellent accessibility initiatives by members of our community!
Image is of an ordering screen at Panera. A woman is using her finger to tap on the screen and order an item. A black rectangular sign is sitting at the base of the screen, and there is writing in English & Braille on it.
TapTapSee is an application designed specifically for users who are blind or have low vision, utilizing your device’s camera and VoiceOver functions to take a picture or vide of anything and identify it out loud for you! 📸
TapTapSee is one of the apps our students learn to use in the Apps Club, that meets on Thursdays as part of our Better Health & Wellness Program. Want to find out more? Reach out via email: LGroszew@vlanj.org, or via phone: 973-627-0055 ext. 1312.
Image description: A screen shot of the TapTapSee application as it appears in the Apple App Store. The top left indicates the thumbnail of the app, which is a white outline of glasses and eyebrows on a multicolor background featuring blue, pink and teal hues. The Text reads “TapTapSee camera for the Blind”, a 4 out of 5 star rating, indicating 995 reviews. The bottom shows three different phone screens, with the text, “Just Tap To Take A Picture” in the first image, with a picture of a phone taking a photo of a fuchsia colored flower, and the text “Listen To The Description” in the second image. All 3 images show different angles of the phone and flower.
Not all Vision is 2020 – have you ever heard of age-related macular degeneration (AMD)?
It’s the leading cause of severe, permanent vision loss in people over age 60. AMD happens when the small central portion of your retina, called the macula, wears down. Because the disease happens as you get older, it’s often called age-related macular degeneration. It usually doesn’t cause blindness but might cause severe vision problems.
There are two types of AMD – wet & dry.
What are the symptoms of AMD?
Worse or less clear vision. Your vision might be blurry, and it may be hard to read fine print or drive.
Dark, blurry areas in the center of your vision.
Rarely, worse or different color perception.
If you have any of these symptoms, go to an eye doctor as soon as possible. What to do if you are witnessing severe vision loss from AMD or any other eye disease? Reach out to us! At Vision Loss Alliance of New Jersey, we offer a variety of programs for people who have low vision or are blind, in order to help them gain new skills and independence for navigating a life without eye sight.
There are different levels of vision loss and different levels of blindness – being considered legally blind does not necessarily mean the person can’t see anything.
Using nonvisual techniques and tools like a cane when some vision remains doesn’t mean the person is “faking” it. They’re just picking techniques that are most efficient and safe to use with the vision they have left!
Be kind and be courteous, and if you’d like to find out more about the type of vision loss the person has – ask them if they’d be interested in teaching you about it!
At Vision Loss Alliance of New Jersey, we are dedicated to helping people who are blind or have low vision by offering programs that help them learn new skills and gain confidence for an independent life. Want to find out more about our programs? Reach out to the Program Director, Linda Groszew at lgroszew@vlanj.org or at 973-627-0055 ext. 1312.
Exciting tech news from across the ocean: a clinical study of GiveVision Virtual and Augmented Reality Device, conducted in the United Kingdom, has shown great promise to restoring eye sight for people who have irreversible vision loss.
All participants who received the device had low eye vision, which cannot be corrected by neither prescription glasses nor surgery. They had to evaluate the improvement of three main elements of eyesight. Those are binocular distance visual acuity, reading acuity, as well as contrast sensitivity.
The responses of the participants indicated that 98% of them (59 out of 60) experienced an improvement in visual acuity, some almost to the extent of regaining 20/20 vision!
Find out more about the study by clicking the link below:
On Tuesdays, we offer a program that centers around accessible technology. 📲
Students learn about various features of the iPhone and iPad that are designed to make the user experience easier for people who are blind or have low vision. They also learn basic functions of the devices, such as email, texting, and using the internet, and are taught about apps for daily living & organization.
Can you make a small donation to help us continue to offer programs like Technology Tuesday? Any contribution helps! You can donate by clicking the link below:
According to a recent survey by the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), most folks fall short when it comes to knowledge about eye diseases.
👁️ Although 81% of the 3500 surveyed adults were knowledgeable about vision health, only 19% knew the three main causes of blindness in the United States: glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration and diabetic eye disease.
👁️ Only 47% knew that vision loss and blindness don’t affect all people equally, and just 37% knew that people don’t always have symptoms before they lose their vision to eye diseases. In addition, less than half (47%) knew that because it adapts to vision loss, the brain can make it difficult to know if you are losing your vision.
How can you know for sure? Get an eye exam! Everyone should get an eye exam at least once a year, and go see an eye doctor immediately when noticing any changes in vision.
Vision Loss Alliance of New Jersey is dedicated to empowering adults with profound vision loss or who are blind lead independent and active lives. If you or a loved one is experiencing severe vision loss, and would like some information, reach out to us to find out more about our programs and how we can help by emailing Linda Groszew, our Program Director, at LGroszew@vlanj.org or calling 973-627-0055 ext 1312.
People who are blind are still ordinary people. It can feel quite awkward for them if you say they are amazing for accomplishing ordinary tasks like walking or tying shoes. They too like ordinary things and have ordinary hobbies, but it’s not necessary to make a big deal of everything.
Also keep in mind they probably have years of experience using nonvisual techniques to live their lives. Feel free to ask how they do something, or how best you can assist them, if help is needed, but don’t assume they can’t accomplish something simply due to not being able to see.
Be My Eyes is a free app that was created to help people who are blind or low-vision with daily tasks.
Through a live video call, blind and low-vision users connect with volunteers who provide them with visual assistance for tasks ranging from matching colors, to checking if the lights are on, to preparing dinner, etc.
The app is available on iOS and Android, and is free for all users!
We explore different accessibility apps during Tech Tuesday, as well as in our Apps Club that meets as part of our Health & Wellness Program every Thursday. For more information about our programs, please contact our Program Director, Linda Groszew, via email ✉️lgroszew@vlanj.org or by calling ☎️ 973-627-0055 ext. 1312.
Image description: The image is divided in 3 sections. Top left is a purple rectangle. In beige text, the top line states “APP HIGHLIGHT:” and in white text, middle line states “Be My Eyes”. At the bottom is a white circle highlighting the Vision Loss Alliance of New Jersey logo.
The bottom left is a white rectangle showing the “Be My Eyes” app as it appears in the Apple App Store, with the blue logo, 3 images of app use, and star rating and description of the app.
The right side of the image shows the home screen of the app once it’s downloaded. The text reads “3,408,673 Volunteers, 185,899 Blind. Join a global community. See the world together.” There is an image of a blue globe centered on the screen. The bottom has two blue buttons: “I am blind or visually impaired” and “I am sighted volunteer.”
How exciting! Students at Ohio State School for the Blind are testing a new kind of paint – smart paint – that can make outside navigation safer for people who are blind or have visual impairments!
The smart paint is used on crosswalks, and it pairs with sensors installed in students’ canes 🦯 to alert them when they reach the borders of a crosswalk.
“Every large university has a significant population of blind and visually impaired students,” says John Lannutti, a professor from The Ohio State University’s college of Engineering who is leading the study. “Getting them from point A to point B can be difficult and sometimes dangerous, especially when automobile traffic is involved.”
Lannutti’s team proposes to add smart paint to campus intersections to ensure students who are blind or low vision can navigate the campus safely by staying inside crosswalks. Great start to making streets safer! Read more in the article below.
Amazing! The world needs more people like Rome Nardin!
Nardin, a 12-year-old student from Tampa Bay, created a video game as part of a science fair, that is accessible for kids (and adults) who are blind or have low vision.
🎮 The game, “Please Listen,” is played on a computer and requires players to listen and follow directions to navigate through different obstacle courses with the goal of obtaining a coin to advance to the next level.
And it includes a bit of dry humor.
For example, if the player runs into a wall during the game, Nardin can be heard saying: “No, you can’t go that way. You’re going to bump your head.”
