Is it true that watching TV is too close, can it damage children's eyes?

When you were a child, your parents were probably busy advising you - or staring, if you were still stubborn - not to watch TV too closely, otherwise your eyes would be damaged. This advice sticks tightly in your mind right into adulthood and now, as a parent, it is you "on duty" to warn your children not to sit too close to the television screen.

Have you ever wondered, where does this advice come from and does the advice passed down from generation to generation contain the slightest bit of truth?

Starting from the old convex TV

Prior to the 1950s, many convex screen televisions were known to emit high levels of radiation from the cathode-ray tubes inside, up to 10,000 times higher than the safe limit. As a result, after continuous and repeated exposure, this radiation can increase the risk of vision problems in a large proportion of people. The recommendation from the authorities to overcome this panic is to keep a sitting distance from the TV screen. As long as you sit a little away and don't watch TV for more than an hour or too close, you'll be safe. A number of television manufacturers quickly withdrew their "flawed" products and fixed them, but the stigma of "watching tv too closely will damage the eyes" lingers to this day.

Scientists of modern times can confirm that this ancient memorial is truly obsolete. There is no scientific evidence that watching tv too closely hurts the eyes - in both children and adults. In addition, modern television sets are now designed with a strong leaded glass shield, so that light radiation is no longer a problem.

The child watches TV too closely, maybe because he is already myopic

Children generally have the habit of reading books or sitting right in front of a TV screen, because of the desire to fill their peripheral vision with the images on the TV screen. This does not require special concern. Children's eyes are designed in such a way as to be able to focus over short distances faster and better than adult eyes. This habit usually diminishes as they grow older.

Watching TV too closely will not make your child nearsighted, but maybe your child is sitting too close to the TV screen because he is nearsighted and has never been diagnosed before - not due to television radiation. If your child is accustomed to sitting too close to the TV to worry about you, especially those who are sitting very close and / or watching from odd angles, have their eyes checked by an eye doctor for a proper diagnosis.

At worst, sitting too close to a modern TV screen will only give you headaches and possibly tired eye syndrome. Both of these can be problems for the child, who often watches TV while lying on the floor. Watching TV while looking up makes the eye muscles more prone to stretching and fatigue than looking at the TV with the screen at eye level or looking down (the same applies to computer monitors or other electronic gadgets).

Tired eye syndrome can also occur when watching TV or looking at a computer screen in a screen light that is dimmer than the room lighting. Fortunately, eyestrain is not a permanent condition and does not threaten a child's safety. Eye fatigue can be easily resolved: turn off the TV.

It's best to immediately encourage your child to get out of his seat in front of the TV at this time and do other productive activities, because it seems that the worst effect of watching TV does not lie in eye health, and may come from watching television too often and long, no matter how far. screen distance.

However, watching TV for too long is still not good for eye health

Children who spend too long in front of screens and are physically inactive have narrowed blood vessels inside the eye, according to an Australian study found in the NY Times.

The researchers gathered nearly 1,500 children aged 6 years from all over Sydney. Researchers examined participants' eyes after examining time spent on productive physical activity and time wasted just watching TV / computers. The results, they showed that the children who watched TV the most and the longest were found to have narrowed blood vessels in their eyes, compared to the group of children who watched TV less frequently.

The results for physical activity were not much different either: The eyes of the children who rarely exercised both showed narrowed blood vessels. However, the reasons are not clear.

Until now, researchers have not been able to determine what effect the narrowing of blood vessels in the eyes of children has, but in adults, narrowing of the blood vessels of the eye has been associated with an increased risk of heart disease.

In addition, according to Scientific American, children who consistently watch TV for more than four hours a day are more likely to be overweight - which can lead to a number of health problems later in life.

So what are the rules for safe TV viewing?

Although watching tv may be an inevitable activity for your little one, the key is to use it wisely. Watching TV too close will not make children lose their overall vision, but still limit the amount and time your child exposes to any screen (TV, cellphone, computer), and monitor what they are allowed to watch. Parents should teach their children that TV is an occasional entertainment, not a constant escape.