BOSTON -- We depend on electronic devices for almost everything. But staring into them for hours every day can cause short-term eye damage.

NewsCenter 5's Heather Unruh reported Wednesday on different ways to ease the strain.

It would be safe to say that most of us spend hours glued to our computers. We hover over our cell phones, Blackberrys, iPhones and iPods, squinting at tiny screens. And for some, it's taking a toll on their eyes.

"They were red. They were tired. They were not feeling so well," said Hanna Chwilczynska, an eye strain sufferer.

Dr. Paddy Kalish is starting to see an increase in patients suffering from visual fatigue, because they spend too much time in front of their electronic devices.

"There's a lot of short term damage being done," said Kalish, of Brookline Vision.

Kalish says there's even an official name for the condition.

"It's a part of a syndrome called computer vision syndrome," he said.

But Kalish says you can ease the strain by follow the "three B rule."

"The three B rule is blinking, breathing, and take breaks," he said.

He said take breaks from your computer every hour, and close your eyes for about a minute or two. Plus, make a conscious effort to blink

"When you don't blink, the eyes get tired. And then the tears don't get spread across the front of the eye," Kalish said.

And breathe normally.

"A computer sort of hypnotizes you, because when you stare you stop breathing normally," Kalish said.

He said good lighting can also take the strain off your eyes. If you spend more than four hours behind a computer every day, you might want to ask your eye doctor about getting a pair of prescription classes for computers.

"I started wearing those glasses, and I started to see the improvement," Kalish said.

Kalish said when you're on the computer keep the ambient light dim so there's more contrast from the screen. He said when the contrast is great, you see better.

5 Tips To Help Your Eyes