It is known that the Sun it lifts our spirits. Besides, those of us who have been in workplaces that had little or no natural light, at the end of the day we felt tired and grumpy.
This does not mean that too much light is not a problem. There has to be a balance here, as in many other things. A little light and our eyes get tired. Too much light and the reflection on the computer screen gives us a headache.
Ergonomics experts share together tips on how to make better use of light in the workplace especially now with the pandemic of coronavirus, working from home.
Place the desk perpendicular to the window
If our desk is facing the window or we have the window on our back, then we have taken the wrong position. Neither is ideal.
When a window is directly behind the computer screen, our screen is surrounded by light and this causes eye strain. If we are sitting with the window behind us, the sun will reflect on the screen - and this can also cause headaches as we have too much light.
That is why experts recommend sitting vertically at the window while working, because there's less glare on our screen. «Having the light from the side of the screen gives us better illumination,» argues Karen Lessing.
«What we're trying to do is balance the brightness of our screen,» says Deborah Getsman, founder and principal lighting designer of Gottesman Associates.
If we can choose a north or south-facing window, even better so that «the sunlight doesn't create shadows depending on the time of day,» says Karen Lessing. This way the lighting remains constant throughout the day.
Curtains and blinds can help
If we can't change our seat at the desk and we have the window behind the computer screen then «translucent curtains of the voile type can help us», replies Deborah Getsman.
Also if the light, it hits us directly and is not pleasant, we turn the blinds to face upwards.
«So the light goes up and then from the reflection it makes on the ceiling, it comes back down.».
We choose an office luminaire
If we do other tasks in addition to using a computer, such as reading notes, we can choose a desk lamp with a broken neck.
«Choosing it helps us to get the right angle and the ideal height we want,» explains Karen Lessing.
Remember that before we start shopping around for the perfect office lamp, it is good to focus first of all on the position we are sitting in. No matter how good the lamp we buy, it is useless to us if we do not combine it with the correct position in the chair.
According to Karen Lessing, our back should be touching that of the chair. «Only then can we determine the light we need.».
