Children: more myopia in lockdown
Christiane Fux studied journalism and psychology in Hamburg. The experienced medical editor has been writing magazine articles, news and factual texts on all conceivable health topics since 2001. In addition to her work for, Christiane Fux is also active in prose. Her first crime novel was published in 2012, and she also writes, designs and publishes her own crime plays.
More posts by Christiane Fux All content is checked by medical journalists.Lockdown and contact restrictions promote visual defects in children. But there is a lot that can be done about it.
Due to the lockdown, homeschooling and the contact restrictions in the pandemic, mankind is staring at the various displays even more often - including the children. This is not without consequences: A study from China shows that children's myopia increased dramatically in 2020.
Up to three times as many myopic children
Myopia was diagnosed around three times more often than in previous years, especially in children between the ages of six and eight. On average, children in this age group lost around 0.3 diopters of vision, a study of more than 120,000 Chinese schoolchildren between the ages of six and 13 showed.
There is a lot that could be done about this: “The problem is that the distance is too short. When the children write their WhatsApp messages, they hold their smartphone very close to their eyes, ”explains Dr. Ludger Wollring, press officer of the professional association of ophthalmologists in Germany in an interview with
When the eyeball grows too much
When reading or playing games on the smartphone, the eyes are constantly focused on things at close range. In the long run, the eyeball begins to grow. As a result, the focal point of the incident light, and thus the sharp image, at some point no longer lies on the retina, but in front of it - the image becomes blurred. Even 1 mm increase in length means a difference of minus three diopters.
Even tablets, which many schools have now equipped kids with for the home office, are of the opinion that the doctor is not very suitable. Here, too, the distance between the display and the eye would not be sufficient.
Preschoolers and primary school students should therefore use a smartphone or tablet for a maximum of half an hour a day, with older children limited to three hours. “The younger the children are, the more important it is,” says Wollring.
Mind you: This does not apply to a properly set up computer workstation. If the distance to the screen is an arm's length of 60 to 65, as stated in the occupational safety guidelines, VDU work does not promote myopia.
Daylight slows myopia
Another effective way to counteract myopia in childhood and adolescence is simply to send the children out. Two hours a day outdoors are ideal for children in development.
This is because the light intensity and color spectrum of daylight outdoors have been proven to slow down the elongation of the eyeball. "Sufficient doses of natural light prevent the increase in myopia to a not inconsiderable degree," says Wollring. In South Korea, those responsible have therefore relocated physical education outside and doubled sports times.
Difficult conditions in lockdown
It is obvious that such advice is not so easy to implement right now. Not every child has a full-fledged computer for homeschooling. Then fixed agreements help for times when the display is not viewed. Parents can set a good example and also set smartphone-free time blocks for themselves to which they adhere.
The opportunities for playing outdoors are still limited, especially for the younger children, and school sports are canceled anyway. But a little more than nothing is always possible: “You can go outside even in snowy weather,” says Wollring. And you can also meet and play outside with just one friend.
Parents can also playfully practice eye sports with their children - “I see something that you don't see,” for example, with objects that are deliberately further away. Or just go bird watching at the weekend.
Look out the window more often
Another help for the eyes is to consciously switch to distance vision from time to time, also on the computer. The rule of thumb here is 20x20x20. This means: every 20 minutes for 20 seconds fix a point that is at least 20 meters away.
Although this does not counteract myopia, it prevents dry eyes and tension. After 50 minutes of screen work at the latest, a break is definitely due - ideally with a long look out of the window. Foresight is required, especially in times of pandemics.
