Optometrists ask for a rest

Eye

Meet Rod and Iris. The characters in the Ontario Association of Optometrists’ (OAO) new online spots are (if you remember any of your middle school biology classes) actually structures in the eye, and your late-night Instagram scrolling and social media creeping is keeping them up. You could be the sole reason for their eventual separation, so would you stop it already?

The spots, created by Edelman, respond to recent research that states Canadians are spending more time in front of screens. The research found that 65% of Canadians spend more than five hours a day in front of screens. Millennials in particular seem to be device-dependent, spending up to 16 hours a day in front of screens (when we think of our habits, we would have to reluctantly agree). No big surprise there. But what is surprising is how much damage screen strain is doing, which is what the OAO is hoping to clear up for some people with animated spots that demonstrate exactly what goes on behind your eyes when you’re behind a screen.

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The spots show the symptoms of digital eye strain, from blurred vision to eye fatigue to headaches, using humourous creative that’s sort of a nod to the hugely popular (among adults as much as youth) animated movie Inside Out. The creative also follows the organization’s previous animated campaign that gives Canadians a 20-second excuse to daydream (like we ever needed a reason before).

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From Stimulant