WASHINGTON, Aug 11: Don't kid yourself: Your computer can damage your health in more ways than you probably know.

When it comes to computers and health, repetitive stress injuries like Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) generally get all the attention. And while CTS is nothing to brush off as insignificant - people who have it suffer from wrist pain so debilitating that it can force them to give up working with computers altogether - there's a host of other health problems that computer users are reporting with increasing frequency.

Take eyestrain, for example. In the United States, some 12 million people visit eye doctors each year because of computer-related problems, according to the American Optemetric Association. Typically, they complain of blurred vision, dry eyes, and headaches.

``I see too many people who work with computers'', Banyong Chakshuvej, a Maryland-based ophthalmologist, said. ``It's a real problem''.

The good news is that for most people, the vision problems subside after after a few hours away from the computer, and experts say that there's no evidence that using a computer causes permanent damage to people's eyes.

But almost anyone who has stared at a monitor all day knows the disoriented, blurry feeling you can come away with. And temporary symptoms of blurry vision, eye fatigue, and dry or watery eyes are very real.

According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, there are steps you can take to minimise eye strain while working with computers. The academy recommends that your monitor be placed slightly below eye level, and room lighting should be arranged so that reflection and glare are minimised.

But eye problems are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to computer-related health issues. Just as common are complaints about neck, shoulder, arm, and back pains - or so-called muskuloskeletal injuries.

``I've met lots of computer users with tendon and muscle problems'', Jeff Delpapa, a computer scientist in Boston said. It's a lot more common than Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

Octavio Holguin, an Oregon-based occupational therapist who specialises in computer-related injuries, agrees.

According to Holguin, aside from ergonomic seating and input devices, regular stretching exercises are the most important preventative measure that computer users can take to head off muscle and tendon-related health problems.

Stretching the back, shoulders, and arms should be done every 20 minutes, before discomfort is felt, Holguin says. Aerobic exercise is also very important. People who participate in regular aerobic exercise for at least 20 minutes at least three times a week have very low incidence of these types of injuries.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.