Children today are spending more and more time on their phones, and parents and doctors both fear that this might harm children’s visual development. Ophthalmologists have also reported that children are now complaining of dry eye and eye strain from too much screen time than they did before.
But can more screen time actually lead to eye-strain and cause lasting damage? Is it right to ask your children to use reading glasses or computer glasses? A new research by the American Academy of Ophthalmology aims to help parents to decide what is beneficial and harmful for their children’s eye health with facts.
Myopia, or nearsightedness has also become a world-wide epidemic. Since the year 1971, the number of cases of nearsightedness have almost doubled in the US. Nearly 90 percent of teenagers and adults in Asia are nearsighted- the number’s so high it has shocked scientists, they agree that’s something is behind this, but they can’t put a pin on it.
The study, which was published recently in the journal Opthalmology from the American Academy of Ophthalmology, provides us with further evidence about the increase in the number of myopia cases. It suggests that while screen time does play a role, but traditional books and near work activities also affect visual development.
The study also talks about how spending more time outside, especially in early childhood, can also reduce the risk of developing nearsightedness. There is no clear data available on whether this high number of people affected by nearsightedness is because of people spending excessive time on their phones, or because of light interacting with people’s circadian rhythms.
Scientists are still looking for a definitive answer, but they agree that excessive computer use does lead to digital eyestrain. Digital eyestrain affects both children and kids equally. Adults can also experience dry eye, eye strains, blurry vision, and headaches. The symptoms are usually temporary, but can also become frequent and persistent.
This does not mean that parents should rush to their doctors for getting a prescription for buying computer glasses for their children. The research team also notes that blue light that comes from computer screens does not necessarily damage our eyes. What children, and adults too, should be doing is they should be taking frequent breaks. We tend to blink less when using our computers, laptops, and smartphones. Since extending reading, writing or other intensive near work also lead to eyestrain, ophthalmologists recommend that people should be taking a 20 second break from their near work in every 20 minutes.