Editing Virtual reality (section)

===Health and safety===
There are many health and safety considerations of virtual reality. A number of unwanted symptoms have been caused by prolonged use of virtual reality,<ref>{{cite book |doi=10.1201/b17360 |title=Handbook of Virtual Environments |date=2014 |isbn=978-1-4665-1184-2 |editor-last1=Hale |editor-last2=Stanney |editor-first1=Kelly S. |editor-first2=Kay M. |last1=Lawson |first1=Ben D. |chapter=Motion sickness symptomatology and origins |pages=531–599 |chapter-url={{GBurl|XihZBAAAQBAJ|p=531}} }}</ref> and these may have slowed the proliferation of the technology. Most virtual reality systems come with consumer warnings, including seizures; developmental issues in children; trip-and-fall and collision warnings; discomfort; repetitive stress injury; and interference with medical devices.<ref name="Oculus Rift Warnings">{{cite web|title=Oculus Rift Health and Safety Notice|url=https://static.oculus.com/documents/310-30023-01_Rift_HealthSafety_English.pdf|access-date=13 March 2017|archive-date=6 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706233539/https://static.oculus.com/documents/310-30023-01_Rift_HealthSafety_English.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> Some users may experience twitches, seizures, or blackouts while using VR headsets, even if they do not have a history of epilepsy and have never had blackouts or seizures before. One in 4,000 people, or .025%, may experience these symptoms. Motion sickness, eyestrain, headaches, and discomfort are the most prevalent short-term adverse effects. In addition, because of the virtual reality headsets' heavy weight, discomfort may be more likely among children. Therefore, children are advised against using VR headsets.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Araiza-Alba |first1=Paola |last2=Keane |first2=Therese |last3=Kaufman |first3=Jordy |title=Are we ready for virtual reality in K–12 classrooms? |journal=Technology, Pedagogy and Education |date=8 August 2022 |volume=31 |issue=4 |pages=471–491 |doi=10.1080/1475939X.2022.2033307 |url=https://edarxiv.org/ux8hs/ }}</ref> Other problems may occur in physical interactions with one's environment. While wearing VR headsets, people quickly lose awareness of their real-world surroundings and may injure themselves by tripping over or colliding with real-world objects.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Fagan |first1=Kaylee |title=Here's what happens to your body when you've been in virtual reality for too long |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/virtual-reality-vr-side-effects-2018-3 |access-date=5 September 2018 |publisher=Business Insider}}</ref>

VR headsets may regularly cause eye fatigue, as does all screened technology, because people tend to blink less when watching screens, causing their eyes to become more dried out.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mukamal |first1=Reena |title=Are Virtual Reality Headsets Safe for Eyes? |url=https://www.aao.org/eye-health/tips-prevention/are-virtual-reality-headsets-safe-eyes |website=American Academy of Ophthalmology |access-date=11 September 2018|date=2017-02-28 }}</ref> There have been some concerns about VR headsets contributing to myopia, but although VR headsets sit close to the eyes, they may not necessarily contribute to nearsightedness if the focal length of the image being displayed is sufficiently far away.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Langley |first1=Hugh |title=We need to look more carefully into the long-term effects of VR |url=https://www.wareable.com/vr/vr-long-term-brain-eyes-effects-6674 |website=Wareable.com |access-date=11 September 2018|date=2017-08-22 }}</ref>

[[Virtual reality sickness]] (also known as cybersickness) occurs when a person's exposure to a virtual environment causes symptoms that are similar to [[motion sickness]] symptoms.<ref name="Kiryu2007">{{cite journal |last1=Kiryu |first1=T |last2=So |first2=RH |title=Sensation of presence and cybersickness in applications of virtual reality for advanced rehabilitation |journal=Journal of Neuroengineering and Rehabilitation |date=25 September 2007 |volume=4 |pages=34 |doi=10.1186/1743-0003-4-34 |pmid=17894857 |pmc=2117018 |doi-access=free }}</ref> Women are significantly more affected than men by headset-induced symptoms, at rates of around 77% and 33% respectively.<ref name="Munafo et al 2016">{{cite journal |last1=Munafo |first1=Justin |last2=Diedrick |first2=Meg |last3=Stoffregen |first3=Thomas A. |title=The virtual reality head-mounted display Oculus Rift induces motion sickness and is sexist in its effects |journal=Experimental Brain Research |date=3 December 2016 |volume=235 |issue=3 |pages=889–901 |doi=10.1007/s00221-016-4846-7 |pmid=27915367 |hdl=11299/224663 |hdl-access=free }}</ref><ref name="Park et al 2016">{{cite journal |last1=Park |first1=George D. |last2=Allen |first2=R. Wade |last3=Fiorentino |first3=Dary |last4=Rosenthal |first4=Theodore J. |last5=Cook |first5=Marcia L. |title=Simulator Sickness Scores According to Symptom Susceptibility, Age, and Gender for an Older Driver Assessment Study |journal=Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting |date=5 November 2016 |volume=50 |issue=26 |pages=2702–2706 |doi=10.1177/154193120605002607 |doi-access=free }}</ref> The most common symptoms are general discomfort, headache, stomach awareness, nausea, vomiting, pallor, sweating, fatigue, drowsiness, disorientation, and apathy.<ref>{{cite report |id={{DTIC|ADA551763}} |last1=Hicks |first1=Jamison S |last2=Durbin |first2=David B |date=2010 |title=A Summary of Simulator Sickness Ratings for U.S. Army Aviation Engineering Simulators }}</ref> For example, Nintendo's Virtual Boy received much criticism for its negative physical effects, including "dizziness, nausea, and headaches".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Marsh |first1=Steve |last2=Frischling |first2=Bill |title=ELSEWHERE IN GAMELAND |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/business/technology/1995/10/25/elsewhere-in-gameland/fdc405da-3451-4491-ae8a-584ff5b63ed7/ |work=Washington Post |date=24 October 1995 }}</ref> These motion sickness symptoms are caused by a disconnect between what is being seen and what the rest of the body perceives. When the vestibular system, the body's internal balancing system, does not experience the motion that it expects from visual input through the eyes, the user may experience VR sickness. This can also happen if the VR system does not have a high enough frame rate, or if there is a lag between the body's movement and the onscreen visual reaction to it.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Caddy |first1=Becca |title=Vomit Reality: Why VR makes some of us feel sick and how to make it stop |url=https://www.wareable.com/vr/vr-headset-motion-sickness-solution-777 |website=Wareable.com |access-date=11 September 2018|date=2016-10-19 }}</ref> Because approximately 25–40% of people experience some kind of VR sickness when using VR machines, companies are actively looking for ways to reduce VR sickness.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Samit |first1=Jay |title=A Possible Cure for Virtual Reality Motion Sickness |url=http://fortune.com/2018/02/06/virtual-reality-motion-sickness/ |website=Fortune.com |access-date=11 September 2018}}</ref>

[[Vergence-accommodation conflict]] (VAC) is one of the main causes of virtual reality sickness.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Lawson |first1=Ben D. |last2=Stanney |first2=Kay M. |date=2021 |title=Editorial: Cybersickness in Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality |journal=Frontiers in Virtual Reality |volume=2 |doi=10.3389/frvir.2021.759682 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

In January 2022 ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' found that VR usage could lead to physical injuries including leg, hand, arm and shoulder injuries.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Rodriguez|first=Sarah E. Needleman and Salvador|date=2022-02-01|title=VR to the ER: Metaverse Early Adopters Prove Accident-Prone|language=en-US|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/metaverse-virtual-reality-vr-accident-prone-meta-11643730489|access-date=2022-02-02 }}</ref> VR usage has also been tied to incidents that resulted in neck injuries (especially injures to the [[cervical vertebrae]]).<ref>{{Cite news|last=Elgueta|first=Adriana|date=2022-01-31|title=Man breaks neck playing virtual reality game|work=news.com.au|url=https://www.news.com.au/technology/home-entertainment/gaming/gamer-breaks-neck-playing-virtual-reality-game-after-intense-movement-wearing-headset/news-story/e2f8c1f4ac7ea0c21bacaa1410a43e8a|access-date=2022-02-02}}</ref>