TV, Children and Myopia


According to a study conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation in America, children are spending increased amount of time in front of electronic equipment which is urgently calling out for myopia control from an earlier age. On average, children are spending over seven and a half hours a day with electronic media and it is having a significant impact on their eyesight.

Myopia is a condition in which someone becomes short-sighted and can be caused due to lack of long-distance vision. Researchers investigating the impact of the increased use of electronic media suggest that people are finding they are using their eyes for distance viewing less and less. The effects of this are seen in the amount of people that are needing glasses for long-distance activities, e.g. driving. What is worrying is the amount of children whose eyesight is suffering due to them spending nearly a third of their lives in front of electronic equipment and only a third of these children are restricted by their parents as to the amount of TV and computer games they can watch. Children’s eyes are incredibly vulnerable at an early age due to their development; if their eyes aren’t used for long-distance their muscles will not build up properly and hence the later need for glasses.

With the amount of time children spend with computer games and TV increasing by nearly an hour and a half in five years it is evident that parents need to be aware of the effect this could be having on their child’s eyesight. If your child has developed the need to wear glasses, you should discuss the various treatments with your optician. Wearing contact lenses, particularly during the night can act as a brace for the eye that helps slow down the elongation of the eye that occurs in myopia. Children should also be encouraged to participate in activities that allow them to use their eyes in the distance; things like sport games and even just playing outside.

7th February 2010

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