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A new study has found a link between screen time and a higher risk and severity of nearsightedness, or nearsightedness, in children and young adults.
The results of the study were published in the journal “The Lancet Digital Health”.
The open access research was undertaken by eye health researchers and experts from Singapore, Australia, China and the United Kingdom, including Professor Rupert Bourne of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU).
The authors reviewed more than 3,000 studies examining smart device exposure and myopia in children and young adults aged 3 months to 33 years.
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After analyzing and statistically combining the available studies, the authors found that high levels of time spent in front of a smart device, such as looking at a cell phone, is associated with an approximately 30% higher risk of myopia, and when they are combined with excessive computer use, this risk has risen to around 80 percent.
The research comes as millions of children around the world have spent significant time using distance learning methods after schools were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Professor Bourne, professor of ophthalmology at the Vision and Eye Research Institute at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), said: “About half of the world’s population is expected to suffer from nearsightedness by 2050 , therefore, it is a rapidly worsening health problem. Our study is the most comprehensive to date on this question and shows a potential link between screen time and myopia in young people. “
“This research comes at a time when our children are spending more time than ever looking at screens for long periods of time, due to school closures, and it is clear that urgent research is needed to better understand how the exposure to digital devices can affect our eyes and vision, ”added Professor Bourne.
“We also know that people underestimate their own screen time, so future studies should use objective metrics to capture this information,” Professor Bourne concluded.
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