You should take time to check if the lighting solution at your workplace could
be changed to improve your working situation. Our sight accounts for 80% of all
human perception, and for that reason it is easy to understand the importance of
correct lighting. The lighting has a much larger impact upon the working
environment than you realise. Health, working effectiveness and other factors
are affected.
You can do the following exercise:
Sit in your chair
and look around. Is something dazzling you? It could be sunlight from the window
or reflections from other light sources in the vicinity.
Shade your eyes
with your hand, or put on a cap. Are you experiencing any difference? If the
cover is giving you a comfortable feeling, you are most likely being exposed to
direct or indirect glare from overhead light sources.
Place a mirror or a
shiny sheet in front of or on the surface you look at most. Look for reflections
at your own workstation. If you see any light sources in the mirror, you are at
risk of being exposed to reflections.
The consequences of incorrect
lighting giving reflections and glare:
Our body compensates for poor light
and vision conditions
We adopt a poor posture to see well
We get sore
eyes, headaches, and strain in the neck, shoulders and back