Can Bad Eyesight Cause Headaches? Experts Answer

Can Bad Eyesight Cause Headaches?

Did you know that your headaches may be linked to your eyesight? It’s more common than you might think. Vision problems can trigger your eyes to strain harder to see, causing tension and migraine-like symptoms. However, they’re often overlooked as a root cause of headache pain.

In this article, we’ll explore how poor vision can cause headaches, symptoms to watch for, and when to see an eye doctor for relief.

How Can Vision Problems Cause Headaches?

Your eyes are powerful, but they’re not invincible. Vision problems like myopia, astigmatism, or presbyopia can cause your eye muscles to work harder to focus. Over time, this constant strain can lead to tension headaches, eyestrain headaches, cluster headaches, and other uncomfortable symptoms.

According to the American Migraine Foundation, uncorrected vision is a frequent cause of recurring headache pain when paired with screen time or reading for extended periods.

The British Journal of Ophthalmology and ScienceDirect have also published studies connecting prolonged visual strain to these headache symptoms: blurred vision, eye pressure, and light sensitivity.

5 Signs Your Vision May Be Causing Headaches

Your vision could be to blame if you have frequent headaches and haven’t had a recent eye exam. Here are five red flags to look out for.

1. Frequent Frontal Headaches (Forehead Pain)

If you often feel pressure or pain in your forehead, especially after reading or driving, you might be squinting to compensate for your poor vision. Squinting, accompanied by rubbing your forehead or temples, is often linked to nearsightedness (myopia) or farsightedness (hyperopia).

What to do: Schedule an eye exam as soon as possible. Your ophthalmologist may prescribe glasses if you don’t already have them or update your prescription if you do.

2. Eye Pain and Pressure

If your eyes feel heavy, sore, or tender—especially after reading or working at a computer screen—you may have astigmatism or another refractive error. Screen glare and poor lighting only worsen these symptoms.

What to do: Try adjusting the lighting at home or work, and remember to take regular breaks from any screens. If these adjustments don’t help, it’s time to see an eye doctor.

3. Blurry Vision Accompanied by Headaches

If you get blurry vision and a headache, your brain is likely working overtime to decipher unclear images. This is usually a sign of presbyopia, uncorrected vision, or even a more serious issue like ocular ischemic syndrome, which involves reduced blood flow to your eyes.

What to do: Don’t ignore these symptoms. Get checked by an eye doctor to rule out underlying causes and update your prescription if necessary.

4. Headaches After Digital Device Time or Reading

Digital eye strain, also known as computer vision syndrome, is caused by spending long periods on digital devices. It leads to symptoms of tired eyes, eye strain, and headaches. These problems are only exacerbated by screen glare and poor lighting.

What to do: Follow the 20-20-20 rule, which says to look 20 feet away for 20 seconds every 20 minutes. Additionally, blue light filters and computer glasses can help reduce fatigue for some.

5. Sensitivity to Light with Headaches

If bright lights or digital screens make your head pound, you may be experiencing photophobia. This sensitivity to light is often linked to migraines or vision problems, such as binocular vision dysfunction.

What to do: Try limiting exposure to harsh lighting and talk to an ophthalmologist to ensure there are no underlying issues.

Additional Risk Factors That May Link Vision and Headaches

Here are some other, less common, conditions and eye-related issues that can lead to chronic headaches:

Uncorrected Refractive Errors
Myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism, and other uncorrected refractive errors force your eyes to overcompensate, causing pain.
Binocular Vision Dysfunction (BVD)
BVD is a misalignment of the eyes, causing double vision and headaches.
Dry Eye Syndrome
Individuals with dry eye syndrome have chronically dry eyes and eye inflammation, leading to irritation and strain. Try using artificial tears and staying hydrated.
Outdated Prescriptions
If you wear glasses or contact lenses, an outdated prescription can force your eyes to work harder, increasing headaches.
Optic Nerve Conditions
Conditions of this type, like optic neuritis and papilledema, involve swelling or damage to the optic nerve, leading to severe headaches and vision loss or changes.
Degenerative Disease
Eye diseases, like macular degeneration or glaucoma, can gradually strain the eye system. As their eyes struggle to compensate for vision loss, patients with these diseases often develop chronic headaches.
Brain Tumor
Although rare, a tumor pressing on parts of the brain associated with vision, such as the optic chiasm, can cause persistent headaches along with double or blurry vision.
Giant Cell Arteritis
In rare cases, underlying conditions that affect blood vessels, like giant cell arteritis (also known as temporal arteritis), can lead to intense headaches, visual disturbances, or vomiting. If this condition is left untreated, serious complications can occur, so patients should seek medical care immediately.

How to Prevent Vision-Related Headaches

Preventing eye strain headaches starts with healthy vision habits. A few small changes can make a big difference in reducing the frequency with which you experience headaches.

Routine Eye Exams: Keep up with annual eye doctor visits to catch eye problems before they worsen.
Proper Lighting Conditions: Avoid harsh or dim lighting that can strain your vision.
Screen Use Adjustments: To reduce dry eyes, follow the 20-20-20 rule, use blue light filters on your devices, and blink more often.
Ergonomic Tips: Adjust your computer screen height and distance to eye level, increase the text size, and ensure you have proper seating.
Artificial Tears: These can be bought without a prescription and help ease dry eye caused by extended screen time.

When to See an Eye Doctor

Eyestrain headaches can be frustrating, but the good news is that they’re fairly easy to treat. However, if you begin to experience any of the following symptoms, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible:

Headaches that don’t improve after lifestyle changes.
Sudden changes in your vision or having double vision.
Eye pain or pressure that gets worse over time.
Nausea or vomiting due to light sensitivity.

These symptoms could indicate more serious eye conditions or neurological issues that an eye doctor should address immediately.

Expert Insights & Scientific References

Scholarly studies have consistently shown a strong connection between eye problems and headaches.

A 1989 study published in The Journal of Head and Face Pain found a strong link between light sensitivity and headache pain.

Bright light triggered vision-related headaches in nearly 30% of participants and worsened existing headaches in over 70%. Reading also played a role, causing headaches in 16% of people and aggravating symptoms in over half. These findings highlight how visual disturbances like bright lights and extended reading periods can lead to discomfort and cause intense pain.

Additionally, a 2021 study in Seminars in Pediatric Neurology found that uncorrected vision problems like refractive error (HARE), convergence insufficiency (CI), and accommodative spasm (AS) contribute to headache frequency in adults and children.

Furthermore, an article published by Time in 2025 posits that prolonged screen time can lead to eye strain, resulting in headaches, blurred vision, and other symptoms.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can poor vision cause migraines?
Yes. Eye issues can trigger migraines, especially if there’s photophobia, eye strain, or extended screen time involved.
What type of headache is caused by vision problems?
Vision problems typically cause tension-type headaches, eyestrain headaches, and cluster headaches. These headaches usually cause pain in the forehead, temples, or behind the eyes.
Are headaches from eye strain temporary or chronic?
They can be both. Most headaches go away with rest or pain medication, but some may persist if an underlying cause, like poor vision, needs treatment.

Find Relief from Eye Strain Headaches at Choi Eye Surgery Center

If you think poor vision or eye problems are causing you headache pain, you shouldn’t ignore the signs. At Choi Eye Surgery Center, we can provide a comprehensive eye exam to discover the underlying cause of your headaches and provide relief. Schedule an appointment today to start living headache pain-free again!

Five Signs Your Vision Is Causing Headaches