Are screens causing your child to need glasses??! | Facts and Myths Explained

As an optometrist, one of the most common opening lines I hear from parents are, "I think my child's eyesight has worsened because he/she's been viewing the iPad so much!" Is it truth or myth that the use of screens can damage a child's eyesight? What is myopia/nearsightedness and what causes it? Find out in this video!
*Chinese subtitles available with CC function!!*
Source of diagrams: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
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** MEDICAL ADVICE DISCLAIMER **
All content on my KZbin channel is for informational and educational purposes only, does not constitute medical advice, and does not establish any kind of patient-client relationship by your use of the channel content. Although the goal is to provide accurate general information, the information presented here is not a substitute for any kind of professional advice, and you should not rely solely on this information. Always consult a professional in the area for your particular needs and circumstance prior to making any professional, legal, medical and financial decisions.

[@freedomwatch3991]

Nicely explained. You’re a good teacher - thanks.

[@lukemagro6060]

Hi, I live in Sydney Australia, just found out my 8 year old is short sighted, we have done it all wrong, my wife being a primary school teacher and Asian had both our kids reading better than I can by the time they started school. I thought this was great but not so much now. Thankyou for your vids, they have given us some kind of direction to take in seeking help. We were just going to get glasses but because of you we have some lifestyle changes and hope we can help correct or slow this for our boy ( and his little sister before she starts to show symptoms) if you know anyone in Sydney or have more specific advice we would really appreciate it. Thank you.

[@mommydear]

Given the age of your children, it might be worth looking into the MiYOSMART lenses for them. It should be available in Australia. You can learn more about it in my video here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fIDbp56Zl558iK8

[@GorliaTag562]

Thank you for uploading this video!!! Now I understand the reasons for my child's doctor's recommendation.

[@mommydear]

I always find there's so much power and assurance in understanding the reason behind doctors' recommendations. Glad you found the video helpful!

[@dhulfiqaraljaberi6599]

Thanks for the brief video, What are you thoughts about ortho K??

[@mommydear]

I talk about that in my other video which you can check out here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y6uYfmiQYpyHpsk

[@WhiteWith2DreamyEyes]

Well, yes! I'm middle-aged & I still have perfect eyesight 🤩 & no glasses 😊! And... I always loved spending lots of time outdoors as a kid (I still do). I've always felt that this is the factor everyone forgets. *Get outside, everyone!* I love my eyes 👁👁!

[@el1z_]

well.. good for u m8, i’m middle school and i have such bad eyesight for a child, i usually don’t go outside much due to strict parents, so basically i’m the complete opposite of u. :(

[@WhiteWith2DreamyEyes]

@@el1z_ Ooooh😲, I'm sorry! But, I bet you're really good in school, probably better than I😌was. I'm guessing your strict parents have you studying a lot, am I right?

[@el1z_]

@@WhiteWith2DreamyEyes Yes u got that correct, strict parents make me study alot, but in the inside, they still love me :D

[@WhiteWith2DreamyEyes]

@@el1z_ Sweet☺. In MY eyes👁👁, parents who love their children is 1 of the best things there is! I😇think you'll do really well in life, even though your eyesight isn't all that great

[@el1z_]

@@WhiteWith2DreamyEyes Awee ty! That is the most sweetest thing that someone actually said to me :)

[@kas4mi]

Great video, thank you! Would you be able to expand on how much near work is excessive? Considering that we follow 20-20-20 rule through the day, would spending 1hr a day doing near work be reasonable for 4 year old or should it be reduced even further?

[@aashuandi2310]

Excuse me miss but i have a question , when i closemy right eye my left eye seems to be blurry but my right eye is fine if i look through it , does that mean i have myopia? , i dont recall the last time i had an eye test and im worried bc i cant go outside a lot rn cause of corona but im taking breaks in between my classes. pls can u tell me and if so how can i tell my parents to take me to an eye test without them yelling that ''why do u watch too much screens'' bc i need to look at screens for some hours cause of school work i have

[@Name-rl7lv]

That's amblyopia

[@gotoupdate9211]

Madam my child has-5.5 and-4.5 age is 4 year. My question is how many increase it's after 18 year? Is this treatment with lastik after 18 years? Please tell me medam.

[@tango9944]

Hi Dr. Mommy Dear, If the child can read a book clearly at short distance without eye glasses, which means the image is now focused at the retina, perfect vision. Now if the child wear eye glasses with minus diopter for distance viewing, would the eye glasses push the image behind the retina and hence cause the eye to elongate ? would it be better not to wear that eye glasses for close work like reading a book ?

[@mommydear]

Traditional single vision glasses creates the concern you describe in the periphery of the retina. MiYOSMART lenses is an example of a glasses design that offset that effect and therefore need to stay on no matter if child is viewing distance or near for proper myopia control to take place.

[@tango9944]

@@mommydear Thank you Mommy Dear, God bless

[@celesteshearts]

my myopia is -9.00 and im only 12 help

[@jasonwoo7635]

Such a great explanation. Thank you! Question: Your recommendation to spend 90 min outdoors daily. Is that only beneficial if the sun is out?

[@mommydear]

Great question! The study only monitors the amount of time spent outdoors as a measure of sun exposure. I would say being outdoors more in general is the key, regardless if it’s sunny or cloudy.

[@jasonwoo7635]

@@mommydear Cool, thanks!

[@DaChip1236]

Really helpful information. Is wearing the low reading glass (e.g., +1 D reading glass) when reading and watching screen, helps kids with -0.5D myopia to prevent further eye elongation? Thank you,

[@mommydear]

What you are suggesting is essentially method #1 discussed in this video (i.e. executive bifocals). In clinical trials, children who wore executive bifocals (reading add when they viewed near) showed significantly less myopia progression as compared to children wearing single vision lenses (no reading add when viewing near). Separating the distance and near prescription into two pairs of glasses may not be as effective because it's just not feasible to ask children to switch between the glasses throughout the day.

[@DaChip1236]

@@mommydear thank you for the reply. is the single version reading glass has the same effect as executive bifocals ( assume the kids can see the screen clearly by wear single version reading glasses? and also 2) question, is the single version reading glass also have the effect of myopic defocus? Thank you,

[@mommydear]

Yes to both your questions. I would be careful to advise that the reading Add required is different for every child depending on what their prescription is and what they can tolerate for seeing clearly at near (something to be determined by the optometrist). While what you propose (having separate single vision glasses for distance and near) makes sense theoretically, this specific method has not been clinically studied upon because there are so many moments in a day that a child switches from viewing distance to near that it is impractical to have the glasses separated into two pairs. The glasses design that is currently most promising in myopia control for children according to clinical studies is Hoya’s Miyosmart/DIMS lens. I would check that out.

[@DaChip1236]

@@mommydear Really appreciate your time and reply to the questions. Thank you,

[@benkingfamily9815]

I have a 10 year old son wearing 300 grade eyeglasses . At 7 he was diagnosed of in born nearsightedness. Is in born nearsightedness cannot be detected during new born screening? We are from Davao Del Norte, Philippines is there a pediatric doctor in Davao City? Is there a remedy to lessen my son's near sight vision? Thank u Doctor.

[@mommydear]

I made a video on nearsightedness control for children! kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y6uYfmiQYpyHpsk

[@Zantar16]

Does Myopia generally only get worse for youths below age 20? My near work (computers, smartphone, reading, more indoors, ect) has significantly increased as an adult (20s) compared to my youth but my eyesight still remains the same since age 21 (25 now). Doesn't this show that near work isn't really a factor for myopia?

[@mommydear]

Great question! Generally, myopia increases most in one’s childhood and teenage years, and plateaus as one enters his/her twenties. Studies that show a positive correlation between hours spent on near work and increase in myopia only found the trend applicable to children.

[@Zantar16]

@@mommydear That makes sense thanks for answering. Also my cousin and I grew up together and we both played games/read/indoors, ect and his nearsight is basically perfect but he's slightly farsighted. Where as I'm nearsighted. So if we both did the same amount of nearwork why did I get nearsighted and his nearsight is fine but he's slightly farsighted. His older brother is also nearsighted like me.

[@mommydear]

@@Zantar16 We talk about decreasing hours spent on near viewing because environmental factors are within our ability to control. The truth is, a stronger factor that determines one’s need of glasses is genetic predisposition. An analogy to explain this is, two kids receiving the same diet doesn’t mean they will necessarily grow to be the same height. Hope that makes sense!

[@shrutivaishnav4236]

Hii there!! I am a mother of 4 years old daughter, just now we got to know she has to wear a power lense of - 4 in each eye. We both (mother and father has perfect eye vision, we dont wear glasses), we are very upset to know her number will increase as the year passes. How can i stop or slow. Is there any permanent solution for this like any eye surgery?? Help me, I am so worried.

[@mommydear]

Your daughter needs you and your husband to stay calm and do the right thing for her. And it is most certainly not surgery in her case. Call around and find an optometry clinic that offers myopia control. Given how young your daughter is and the degree of nearsightedness she has, I would consider trying low dose atropine and myopia control in the form of glasses for her.

[@shrutivaishnav4236]

@@mommydear thankyou so much..

[@wendya3565]

Hello 👋 i had a question. My eyeglass prescription is as follows OD:-4.50 cyl -1.25 170 axis OS:-4.75 cyl -1.00 180 axis My contact lens prescription is -4.75 -1.25 180 axis on both eyes Now im not sure but i think im being overprescribed. I was using-4.50 -1.25 180 axis for years without an issue but due to GPC i had slightly blurred vision which i feel is the reason why my optometrist increased my prescription . Looking into it i feel i been giving the wrong prescription for years however my vision is clear . In the long run what effect can this have . Im 27 years old i have been using glasses since age 9 and contacts for about 12 years

[@mommydear]

There are so many factors that go into the determination of the final glasses/contact lenses prescription the optometrist prescribes to a patient. It is important that you trust the optometrist you see and feel open to ask any questions or concerns you have regarding your eyes and vision. More often than not, they have very good explanations to your questions and are in the best position to answer them because they have seen your eyes! If you really doubt the professionalism of an optometrist for any specific reasons, it may be better to keep looking for one you can trust. Only then can the best eye care be delivered to you.

[@brewsterpondproductions1027]

thanks for your videos on childhood myopia. Very Good!

[@spongebob64yearsago76]

I'm scared to tell my mum.. she would Say it's because of phone😔.. and then scolded me.. my family is really strict . Can you please gave me an advice ?

[@mommydear]

I recall times when I was small and was scared of telling my parents something I knew they would scold me for. If I could go back, I would choose to be honest every time. They may be strict, but they love you the most. Go tell them the truth and be proud that you made the brave move 😉

[@spongebob64yearsago76]

@@mommydear Thank you for the lovely advice ♥️ I already tell my parents about my situation , but they still won't buy an eye glasses. They say that I spend too much on my phone . but the reality , I'm working on my school assignment. School really won't let me rest for a little bit.

[@daytodaywithnaith151]

Same. I think it's mostly because when I was like 7, I was so obsessed with glasses and I would always ask my mom to buy them for me but now after a couple of years, I realised that my eyesight got worse because mostly at school I need to sit in the front of my class to see the board properly. I have told my parents more than three times that my eyesight isn't good and they don't believe me because they think I'm just obsessed with glasses😭

[@irisnavas6464]

Hi my daughter used the compund .01 percent atropine for two years and it helped but did not completely stop the myopia. She now uses 1 percent atropine. I see her trying to use her bifocal part of her glasses to read up close. Is that okay? How can I help her with reading for school so that is is not too uncomfortable? Thank you

[@mommydear]

If your daughter is wearing bifocals, the bottom part of the lens is designed for for near viewing, so she’s using it right! Make sure to bring your daughter for annual eye exams so the optometrist can check if the prescription needs any change. If she is not yet due for her annual check but complains of difficulty seeing clearly, that warrants a visit to the optometrist as well.

[@brewsterpondproductions1027]

Just a note on the amount of time outdoors. Dr Ian Flitcroft (Dublin) suggests that it's better to break up time outside into smaller portions - rather than one long period of sunshine (and distance viewing). Also, with the 20-20-20 rule, he advises looking out a window (preferably opened) for a unobstructed distance view.

[@athulyanarayanan8672]

If I don't allow him to spend screening time...then .....does myopia be cured at early age( baby is 2 years now)..... ???

[@mommydear]

Excessive time spent focusing at near (including use of digital devices at near) is not the only cause of nearsightedness. As discussed in the video, genetic predisposition plays a large role too. While you may not be able to avoid nearsightedness altogether in children just by limiting their time spent on near viewing, research has shown that it at least can help to slow myopia progression. Spending at least 90min outdoors daily has been shown to slow myopia progression in children.

[@chanrc]

I like the 20-20-20 rule.

[@rominaanas6197]

Is it reversible.

[@hiyakiwii4659]

I wish I saw this video a year ago before my vision started getting bad and everything blurry except for things near me

[@thisUserIsPro]

Hi, how is ur myopia now? Is it cured?