How many hours per day do you spend in front of a glwoing screen? Before you answer that, consider how many devices you own. Many, if not most, of us work in front of computer monitors. Then there are laptops, tablets, smartphones, and of course TVs. Now think about all the time you spend staring into those screens. Chances are they add up to a majority of your waking hours.

Why reduce screen time?

The first question one might ask is, why should we strive to reduce screen time? There are no known long-term detriments to staring at a screen for hours a day, at least none that aren't reversible. Yet there are many little issues that can crop up and make life a little more annoying.

1. Digital screen emit blue light, which the brain associates with sunlight. Screen exposure at night, then, can cause sleep problems.
2. Computer Vision Syndrome is reversible, but while active it can cause headaches, blurry vision, and other temporary ailments. 
3. Perhaps most importantly, there is an entire world that lives beyond the screen.

Dimming blue light For many people, screen time has an association with bedtime. Many people like to read in bed, and have started reading on tablets rather than reading physical books. That's a fine habit in general, but at night it can cause problems. Think about how difficult it is to fall asleep when it's light outside, even if you're dog tired. It's a similar effect when you gaze into your iPad before bed. Two solutions exist. First is to simply cut out the pre-bed TV and iPad usage. If that isn't really an option, then install f.lux on all of your devices: computer, smartphone, tablet. It automatically detects the sunset time, and will gradually cut blue light in favor of yellow light, which mimcks a candle. Combine that with turning down your tablet's brightness, and you can read before bed without cutting into your night's sleep. Removing ill-effects In some ways, screen time is unavoidable. Again, we live in a world where computer monitors are universal. Chances are you work in front of one. Even worse, chances are you don't get up from it except to use the restroom or maybe chat with coworkers. Some people don't even do that, taking matters a step further by eating lunch at their desks. And they wonder why they feel ill when leaving work. And then they go to bed feeling queasy, because they used iPads and watched TVs after work. At work, one solution is to get up every 20 minutes, if only to walk around your office, to to the break room. That will get you not only away from your monitor, but will get your legs up and stretching -- which brings other physical benefits. It might seem weird at first, but trust me it works. Once I started it, I found that I focused more on the task at hand when I returned to my desk, so there are many, many benefits. At home, set a deadline on when you will turn off the TV. This is another solution that is good for many reasons. As mentioned above, life exists beyond the screen. There are plenty of things you can do with your family that don't involve watching TV. So set a cut-off time and turn off the TV at that point. Have a favorite show you don't want to miss? DVR it and watch it later, or find it on-demand. There are so many ways to watch your favorite shows on your own schedule. Not only can sitting in front of a computer screen all day cause physical problems, but it can cause mental ones as well. Taking care to limit your screen time by cutting blue light at night and turning away from the screen every twenty mintues can go a long way. Give it a try and you'll see the difference.