It’s a sunny Sunday morning. You feel rested and you’d love to go on a daytrip. But you dread the drive! You know that in less than an hour you’ll feel exhausted, with a headache, and tension around the eyes. Like on many occasions in the past the fatigue will remain your companion all day! But what causes tiredness when driving (or just riding in a car)? Why driver fatigue and eye strain from driving? Think about it: unless traffic is nerve-wrecking you just sit and watch!? Curiously for some people driving is resting?!? This post draws from vision science to suggest that your driving fatigue (and glare sensitivity) may be associated with low macular pigment optical density. It then suggests solutions: blue light filtering (and polarized) tinted glasses, an antiglare dashmat, and macular pigment carotenoids rich food or dietary supplements to decrease your glare sensitivity.

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