The Real Effects of Virtual Reality on Your Eye Health

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What you need to know about the safety of VR on your vision

Co-authored by Mark Cannon, OD and Travis Boylls

Last Updated: October 12, 2024 Fact Checked

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Effects of VR on Eyesight

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Is VR safe for kids?

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Protecting Your Eyes

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Benefits of VR on Eyesight

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How VR Works

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Tips

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Warnings

VR (virtual reality) is an immersive platform that is exploding in popularity. VR headsets allow you to explore far-off lands and fantastic worlds from the comfort of your home. With more people using VR, many are wondering if it's safe for your eyes. What are the effects VR has on your eyesight, particularly when it comes to children? Is VR safe for your eyes? This wikiHow article answers all your questions and shares expert advice from Ophthalmologists Dr. Kara Hartl, M.D., F.A.C.S, and Dr. Rajesh Khanna, MD.

Is virtual reality bad for your eyes?

Studies have not shown VR to cause long-term damage to eyesight. However, prolonged VR use can cause minor eye problems like eye strain, dry eyes, and blurred vision. Take frequent breaks to prevent these issues.

Section 1 of 5:

How VR Affects Your Eyes

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VR headsets do not seem to cause serious eye problems. VR headsets are pretty new technology, so there aren't many long-term studies on their effects on eyesight.^{[1]
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Research source} Researchers at the University of Auckland's School of Optometry and Vision Science have found that short-term use of VR headsets doesn't seem to cause myopia (nearsightedness)^{[2]
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Trustworthy Source

PubMed Central
Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health

Go to source}, and a more recent study also suggests that short-term VR use did not negatively impact eyesight any more than using a smartphone for the same amount of time.^{[3]
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Trustworthy Source

PubMed Central
Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health

Go to source} However, prolonged VR use can lead to minor short-term eye issues, including:
- Eye strain. Dr. Hartl explains that focusing on any close screens for prolonged periods of time, including a VR headset, can lead to eye strain. "When we focus at close distances, we do so by constricting a muscle in our eye that changes the shape of our intraocular lens and allows the change of focus from distance to near," she explains. "If we focus all day on close devices, a muscle in our eyes must constrict all day long and eventually fatigues and aches. This is the dull pain that we associate with eye strain."^{[4]
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  Expert Source
  
  Kara Hartl, MD, FACS
  Board Certified Ophthalmologist
  
  Expert Interview}
- Dry eyes. Fixating on any screen for an extended period of time can lead to dry eyes. The longer you wear your VR headset, the less often you blink, and blinking is what keeps your eyes moist.^{[5]
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  Trustworthy Source
  
  American Academy of Opthamologists
  Professional medical organization focused on advocating for public health and supporting sight-related research
  
  Go to source} This is especially problematic for people who wear contacts while using VR.
- Blurred vision. Your vision may seem cloudy or blurred after using VR for a prolonged period of time. Fortunately, this effect is usually temporary.^{[6]
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  Research source}
- Eye twitching. VR environments often contain a lot of fast-moving objects and rapid light changes, which can cause your eyes to move and adjust quickly. According to Meta, the developers of the Oculus VR headsets, about 1 out of every 4000 users may experience involuntary eye twitching as a result of prolonged VR usage.^{[7]
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  Research source
  file:///C:/Users/nicol/Downloads/Oculus-Quest-Warnings-English-052119.pdf}

Section 2 of 5:

Is VR safe for kids?

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Prolonged exposure to any screen can lead to eye problems in children. While there aren't many studies on the long-term vision effects of VR in children, there is plenty of evidence that prolonged exposure to video games and electronic screens can negatively impact children's eyes. Studies show that prolonged use of video games (30 minutes or more per day) by children under ten may compromise the development of their visual pathways.^{[8]
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Trustworthy Source

PubMed Central
Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health

Go to source} It's also possible that prolonged VR headset use can negatively impact a child's hand-eye coordination, at least in the short term.^{[9]
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Research source} Fortunately, VR-specific studies have not yet found that VR headsets specifically are found to induce myopia (nearsightedness).^{[10]
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Trustworthy Source

PubMed Central
Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health

Go to source}
- Proper fit is important. Improper VR headset fit can cause eye discomfort in smaller children due to their eyes being too small to properly align with some headsets.^{[11]
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  Research source} An improper fit can lead to eye strain, blurry vision, headaches, and nausea.
- To ensure your child's safety when using VR, make sure they take frequent breaks (at least every 15-20 minutes) when using their VR headsets.
- Most VR devices recommend that children under the age of 13 not use their products.^{[12]
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  Research source}

Section 3 of 5:

How to Use VR Without Damaging Your Eyes

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Take frequent breaks. Most eye problems (including possible myopia) associated with VR are due to prolonged usage. Dr. Rajesh Khanna recommends taking a break at least every 20 minutes to look at something at least 20 feet away for 20 seconds.^{[13]
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Expert Source

Rajesh Khanna, MD
Board Certified Ophthalmologist

Expert Interview}
- If your eyes start to hurt, you feel nauseous and dizzy, or your vision starts to blur, take a break right away.^{[14]
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  Research source}
EXPERT TIP

Rajesh Khanna, MD
Board Certified Ophthalmologist
Dr. Rajesh Khanna is a board certified Ophthalmologist and the Founder of Khanna Vision Institute in Los Angeles, California. Dr. Khanna specializes in Lasik, cataract, and refractive eye surgery as well as treatments for presbyopia and keratoconus. Dr. Khanna completed his first Ophthalmology Residency in Mumbai and his second Ophthalmology Residency at SUNY Downstate in New York City. He went on to complete a fellowship training in corneal and refractive surgery from the University of Cincinnati in Ohio and a Neurophthalmology fellowship from Kingsbrook Jewish Hospital in New York City. Dr. Khanna is also a voluntary member of the UCLA faculty and is an Internationally recognized top Lasik, presbyopic implants in the eye (PIE), and Refractive vision care specialist. He is board certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology and is a certified Master of Surgery by the University of Bombay.

Rajesh Khanna, MD
Board Certified Ophthalmologist

Follow the 20-20-20 vision rule. Every 20 minutes, take a break of 20 seconds, look at least 20 feet away, and blink a few times.
If you're new to VR, start smaller, spending no more than 15 minutes using your headset. As you get used to VR, you can slowly increase that time to 30 minutes. It's best to keep all VR sessions to 30 minutes or less.^{[15]
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Issues such as eye fatigue and eye dryness are caused by not blinking enough when using VR. While using VR, make a concerted effort to blink more often.
Dr. Hartl advises using lubricating eye drops regularly to avoid eye strain and dryness. "Use them before your eyes feel irritated to prevent the irritation from happening."^{[16]
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Expert Source

Kara Hartl, MD, FACS
Board Certified Ophthalmologist

Expert Interview}
Many VR apps also have comfort settings that can reduce the amount of motion you experience (i.e., teleport movement, snap turning, vision vignettes) to make the experience more comfortable. If you experience motion sickness or dizziness while using VR, try using apps that provide a stationary experience without motion.
If you wear prescription lenses or contacts, be sure to keep them on while using VR. Some devices, including the Meta Quest 2, can be fitted with prescription lenses.^{[17]
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Research source}
If your eyes start to feel strained, reduce the brightness levels on your VR device can decrease the strain on your eyes.
To ensure your eye health is at its best, be sure to get regular eye check-ups from your eye doctor. Be sure to let them know about your VR usage.

Section 4 of 5:

Benefits of VR on Eyesight

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As VR grows in popularity, the medical community is just beginning to explore its potential benefits for eye conditions. Some optometrists may instruct patients to use VR in ways that can actually improve vision.^{[18]
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Research source} Luminopia Binocular Therapy is a VR-based visual therapy for children that has been shown to improve the vision of children with amblyopia (lazy eye).^{[19]
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Trustworthy Source

American Academy of Opthamologists
Professional medical organization focused on advocating for public health and supporting sight-related research

Go to source} Other VR eye therapies show promise for conditions like age-related macular degeneration, presbyopia, and myopia.^{[20]
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Trustworthy Source

PubMed Central
Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health

Go to source}

Section 5 of 5:

How VR Works

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It does this using two separate images projected into each eye through lenses at a slightly different angle. Together, these two images create a stereoscopic (or 3D) image. In addition to creating 3D images, VR also uses motion-sensing technology to allow you to look around and even move around in the 3D environment.^{[21]
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Research source}

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Tips

Much of the research that has been done on VR and eyesight is based on older VR headset models. As VR manufacturers become aware of problems, they can make better headsets with higher resolutions, faster frame rates, and more comfort settings that have less of an adverse effect on eyesight.

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Warnings

People with conditions that affect depth perception or focus (i.e., amblyopia, strabismus) may be more prone to headaches and eye fatigue when using VR. Conditions like these may also make it difficult to experience the 3D effects of VR as much.

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If you wear glasses or corrective lenses, you should keep them on while using VR.

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