The US Surgeon General: Devices Make Vision Worse

Parents Were Right About Screen Time. The Science Has Finally Caught Up.

I talk to parents for a living.  Something about the amount of time children spend on phones, tablets, computers, and gaming devices just doesn't seem healthy. Now the have the U.S. Surgeon General on their side.
 

The recent U.S. Surgeon General's Advisory on screen use concludes that excessive screen use is associated with a wide range of physical, mental, educational, and developmental concerns in children. From an eye doctor's perspective, one finding stands out in particular: increased screen use is associated with a higher risk of developing myopia, also known as nearsightedness, especially in children who spend little time outdoors.

Your Child's Eyes Were Never Designed for All-Day Near Work

Children today often spend hours every day focusing on objects that are only inches from their eyes. Whether it's schoolwork, social media, videos, texting, or gaming, much of childhood has shifted indoors and up close.
 

Research now consistently shows that this lifestyle contributes to the worldwide increase in myopia. The Surgeon General's report highlights projections that nearly 40% of children worldwide could be myopic by 2050 if current trends continue.
 

Myopia is much more than needing glasses, it is a child’s eye growing too fast.  Higher levels of myopia increase the lifetime risk of serious eye diseases, including retinal detachment, glaucoma, cataracts, and myopic macular degeneration.
 

That is why slowing myopia progression during childhood has become one of the most important goals in pediatric eye care.
 

One of the Best Things Kids Can Do Is Go Outside

Fortunately, one of the most effective habits for healthy eye development is also one of the simplest.
 

Spend more time outdoors.
 

Multiple studies have shown that children who spend more time outside have a lower risk of developing myopia. While outdoor time is not a cure once myopia develops, it remains an important part of keeping children's eyes healthy.
 

The Surgeon General's recommendations repeatedly encourage families to replace recreational screen time with outdoor activities, sports, parks, playgrounds, and other real-world experiences.
 

Even an extra hour or two outside each day can make a meaningful difference.

A School Vision Screening Is Not Enough

Many parents assume that because their child passed a vision screening at school or at the pediatrician's office, their eyes are healthy.
 

Unfortunately, vision screenings are designed to answer one simple question: "Can this child see well enough today?"
 

They do not measure how quickly a child's prescription is changing. They do not evaluate eye growth. They do not identify children at high risk for progressive myopia. And they certainly do not provide treatment to slow myopia progression.
 

Managing myopia requires comprehensive eye examinations that include careful measurement of prescription changes, evaluation of eye health, and ongoing monitoring over time.

Nearly Twenty Years of Myopia Control Experience

At Bright Eyes Family Vision Care and Bright Eyes Kids, we've been helping children with progressive myopia for almost 20 years, long before myopia management became widely recognized.
 

Today, we provide comprehensive myopia management using the full range of evidence-based treatment options. Every child is different, so treatment is individualized and may include FDA-authorized Essilor Stellest lenses, specialty contact lenses, low-dose atropine eye drops, or combinations of these therapies depending on each child's needs and risk factors.
 

Our goal is not simply to help children see clearly today. Our goal is to reduce how much their myopia progresses over the years, helping lower their lifetime risk of serious eye disease while giving them the best possible vision for the future.
 

If your child is becoming more nearsighted each year, or if one or both parents are nearsighted, now is the time to talk about myopia management. The earlier treatment begins, the greater our opportunity to slow progression and protect your child's long-term eye health.

Call the office at 813-792-0637 to schedule an appointment for your children.