It is common for adults to lose their normal vision of 20/20. The most common eyesight problem is myopia also commonly known as nearsightedness happens to a lot of adults. Nearsightedness can be caused by hereditary or developed gradually during childhood or adolescence.
Myopia can happen to children too at an early age and here are some discussions on the symptoms, causes, and treatments.
What are the symptoms of child myopia:
-Squinting a lot
-Blinking their eyes more than usual
-Rubbing their eyes constantly
-Need to be closer to be able to see objects that are further
-Unaware of distance objects
Causes of child myopia:
-Genetics/ hereditary
If both parents have myopia, there is a higher chance that the children will have myopia at a young age as well.
-Environmental factors
Doing a lot of reading and writing at a very close distance could be a factor. Using electronic devices such as laptops, video games or mobile phones can play a role in causing child myopia. There are studies that suggested that children lacking outdoor activities or time spent outdoors also increase the chance of developing myopia.
How to reduce or treat child myopia?
-Get their vision checked at an early stage, especially if your family has a history of myopia.
-Get them to spend more time outdoors and limit their time from electronic devices.
-Practice the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, look at an object that is at least 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
-Get prescriptive eyeglasses that can sharpen their vision.
It can be quite common for children nowadays to develop myopia at a young age. With all the technology and electronic devices they can easily access to, it’s a higher chance for children’s vision to deteriorate. With the points given above, it is safe to say that we encourage you to get your kids to spend more time outdoors and leave the mobile phones, iPads, and laptops at home. This can help reduce the risk of child myopia and slow down the progression of their myopia.