Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 28, 1993 TAG: 9304280063
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SANDRA BROWN KELLY
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Walk around the office and you'll spot the turtlenecks. They are the workers who are leaning forward with heads tilted up and chins stuck out. Generally, it's the fortysomething crowd in bifocals, straining to read through that tiny lower portion of their glasses.
Gary Best, a Roanoke optometrist, said most complaints come from older workers, but younger people who are farsighted also have problems. They get headaches from having to do so much focusing.
And everyone else talks about their eyes being tired.
Unlike Best, who hasn't yet put his files on computer, most of us can't avoid using video-display terminals. So we need to find ways to overcome computer fatigue.
To make office workers push back our shoulders, balance our heads, move our necks and breathe deeply, Julie Friedeberger recommends yoga stretches. She wrote "Office Yoga" after 30 years of office work and 20 years of yoga convinced her that the activities are compatible.
Yoga and similar meditative exercise programs such as tai chi have gentle, controlled movements that help align the body and focus the mind away from daily drivel.
The exercises can be done in a sitting position and are user-friendly for those who still smirk at yoga as something practiced by old hippies.
In addition to stretches, what else can you do?
Take hourly eye breaks, said Kendra Savage, supervisor of nursing at Gill Memorial Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Clinic in Roanoke.
If the screen appears to blur, try moisturizing eye drops, said Donna Otey, occupational medicine receptionist at Lewis-Gale Clinic in Salem, herself a computer user.
Check your blink interval, said Best. Studies show that people who work at computer terminals open their eyes wider than normal and blink less often. This, added to constant movement of not-always-clean air can make eyes dry, he said.
If you're at the bifocal stage, consider single-lens glasses to wear in front of the computer terminal. If you're lucky enough to be able to use drugstore reading glasses, $7 to $14 depending upon store and sale, go for it, said Best.
And remember the problem generally is not with the eyes, but with the entire body, he said.
Check the setup at your desk. Is the terminal too close or too far away? Sixteen to 18 inches is best for bifocal wearers. Is there glare from the overhead light, which causes squinting?
Try to sit in a chair that can be raised or lowered; if your legs don't touch the floor, prop them on some books.
Companies spend a lot of time and money trying to be ergonomic, but nothing beats getting up and moving your muscles, said Best. The answer to many computer complaints often is as simple as the parental warning to stand up straight.
However, if you have a chance to select computer equipment for office or home, there are some things to keep in mind that will reduce the stress, said Steve Welsh, manager at Computerland in Roanoke. Here are his tips:
A color monitor is easier on the eyes than monochrome.
Monitors are graded for crispness like television screens, so look for high resolution.
Look for a monitor that can be raised or lowered like E.T.'s neck for various users.
Little help for the kids
Don't be taken in by the pictures of missing children that are appearing on vending machines.
The state Division of Consumer Affairs said the Vanished Children's Alliance of San Jose, Calif., has contracted with professional solicitors who set up the vending-machine program. The solicitors keep most of the profits, passing on only $1 to $2 per machine each month to the charity. Also, the solicitors have not registered with the state as required, the consumer office noted.
The state also warns that candy boxes placed in retail stores on behalf of charities operate about the same way; only a small amount of money donated for a piece of candy actually goes to charity.
Uh-oh, the flying's phony
Hasbro Inc.'s Battle Copter hovered and flew in television commercials, but not in fact.
For the commercial, the helicopter dangled from wires attached to poles held off-camera, and battery-operated motors made the rotors swirl, according to a complaint by the Federal Trade Commission.
The FTC told Hasbro to quit the deceptive advertising.
The toy helicopters, part of a G.I. Joe series, actually use a "zip strip" that causes them to fly briefly in an uncontrolled way and then crash, according to the commission. "Zip strips" are simple mechanical devices that employ friction to propel many toys.
Hasbro, the largest U.S. toy maker, and its New York advertising agency, Griffin Bacal Inc., have agreed to settle FTC complaints that they misrepresented the performance of the helicopter and of action figures called Eco-Warriors.
Also, the FTC complained that a picture on the box containing Eco-Warriors suggested that they change color when wet to a greater degree than actually happens.
Hasbro, based in Pawtucket, R.I., will pay a $175,000 civil penalty to settle complaints - filed in federal court by the Justice Department at the FTC's request - that it knew its conduct was deceptive and illegal when it misrepresented the toys' performance.
In 1978, Hasbro paid $40,000 to settle a complaint about what the FTC called misrepresentations involving two other toys. In the helicopter case, the FTC followed a trend of targeting both the company and its ad agency.
by CNB