Vision problems in children are on the rise and
experts say modern technology is partly to blame.
Katrina Shute
discovers some simple but effective
measures to stave off problems for young eyes.
S
o Santa delivered and left that
iPad mini under the tree for your
seven-year-old, your nine-year-
old just brought home a new
laptop from school, and your pre-teen
spends every free moment furiously
tapping away on her phone like her life
depends on it. These are all common
scenarios in Hong Kong, but ones
that could be causing a host of vision
problems for this generation of kids.
Hong Kong ophthalmologist
Dr Christopher Yu says since the
introduction of popular handheld
devices over the past decade,
problems such as myopia (also known
as being near- or short-sighted) have
increased dramatically in younger
children. “In previous generations, it
was more common for us to prescribe
glasses for myopia for students in
secondary school. Now, we see plenty
of children in primary school who need
assistance with their long-distance
vision,” he says.
The cause
Problems occur when the eyes are
focused at a distance of less than half
a metre for lengthy periods of time
without a break.
It used to be that kids would do
their homework and read at short
distances, but their leisure time was
spent outdoors or doing activities that
require a longer distance of focus.
Even watching television requires sitting
several metres away from the screen.
Now, many kids spend much of
their leisure time glued to handheld
devices or laptops, playing games,
communicating with friends or simply
surfing the net. The eyes can become
so accustomed to the shortened field
of vision that they lose their ability to
work properly for distance vision.
Myopia is now common in kids
where neither parent has the condition,
and is occurring much earlier in kids
who have a genetic predisposition.
The first indication of a problem
is when kids start squinting to look at
objects in the distance. They might also
begin moving themselves closer to the
TV for a better view or complaining of
not being able to see the whiteboard
at school. When symptoms occur, it’s
time for an appointment with the eye
doctor.
“For the first appointment
it’s better to see an experienced
ophthalmologist, who will be able to
rule out any other issues, and who has
the specialised equipment to give
an accurate prescription for glasses,”
says Dr Yu. “It’s important to get the
first prescription spot on, as glasses
that are too strong or too weak can
make myopia worse in eyes that are still
growing and developing.”
Look
away
Take precautions
There are steps you can take to
improve your child’s odds of having
better vision. Experts recommend
introducing handheld devices to your
child as late as possible, and definitely
not before age five. That means
fighting the urge to hand over your
phone or iPad to keep Junior quiet
while Mum’s having a coffee and chat
(oops, guilty as charged!). It’s also
best to limit any small-screen time to
15 minutes. When your child is older
and doing homework on a computer
or laptop, have them work in half-hour
stints. After 30 minutes, they should
stop for a 15-minute eye break and
focus on something at least 20 feet
away. Even better, get them outside
for some activity that will exercise their
body as well as their eyes. “In countries
like Australia, where more children
participate in outdoor sports and
activities, rates of myopia are far lower
than they are in developed countries in
Asia,” says Dr Yu.
Other measures include using a
big-screen PC rather than a laptop,
and increasing the font so the child
can sit farther away from the screen.
When watching a movie, it’s much
healthier for their eyes to watch it on a
television screen from the sofa than on
an iPad on their lap.
But, if they do need glasses,
don’t despair: children’s frames have
improved significantly from the nerdy
Coke-bottle varieties of yesteryear.
With modern styles and vibrant colours,
today’s kids view glasses as more
of a fashion statement than vision
assistance.
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