There is a link between gadget use and nearsightedness, but it’s not quite the same as you might think.
From time to time we hear or read that the ubiquity of electronic devices – smartphones, tablets, laptops – is to blame for the increase in myopia worldwide. Moreover, it usually means that the connection here is completely direct – when we look at luminous screens a lot and for a long time, our eyesight deteriorates.
At the same time, it has always been believed that myopia and the need to use glasses are directly related to performing tasks that require special eye strain, so glasses have always been recognized as an integral attribute of scientists or drunken readers who have not parted with books all their lives. “If you read a lot, you will be left without eyes,” says folk wisdom.
And since screens have actually replaced books in the modern world, we automatically shifted the responsibility for visual impairment from one to another.
However, as writes in his article on theconversation.com Conchi Lillo, an eye pathology specialist at the University of Salamanca (Spain), the existence of a direct, direct relationship between myopia and screens does not find sufficient scientific confirmation.
Rather accomplices, but not the main accused
Can electronic devices, or rather, their excessive use, cause the development of myopia? The results of recent studies suggest that they are not directly responsible for this.
Myopia or myopia, when the eye does not see objects located far away, may be associated with an increase in the length of the eyeball, due to which the cornea and lens focus light rays not on the retina, but in front of it. Sometimes the cornea, the lens, or both are too curved, which also causes the rays to converge at a point outside the retina.
All these anomalies are corrected with the help of lenses that transmit light information to the right place, that is, to the retina.
The process by which the eye becomes myopic is not fully understood, but it is well known that in order for our vision to develop correctly, we need to regularly look alternately at near and far objects.
Therefore, it is logical to assume that if you look at screens often and for a long time, and do this starting from an early age, when the visual system is still being formed and matures, then an imbalance may appear: the eye will see well objects located close, and badly located far away. However, there is not enough scientific evidence that this is what causes myopia.
What your tear looks like: 24 best scientific photos – in our gallery:
Playing with photons. Nomination: People in science. Description: An employee of the REC Functional Micro/Nanosystems in the process of assembling a photonic integrated circuit that allows computing at the speed of light. Author: Kushlevich Sergey Olegovich
Microcrystals of human tears. Nomination: Microimages. Description: It is known that a human tear is 98-99% water. But in addition to water, a tear contains organic (by 0.1%) and inorganic (by 0.9%) substances. The micrograph shows microcrystals of some inorganic substances from the author’s tears. Contrasting method: variable phase contrast. Author: Mikhaltsov Anatoly
Microcrystals of amino acids. Nomination: Microimages. Description: Microcrystals of a mixture of some amino acids. Contrasting method: polarization with compensators. Author: Mikhaltsov Anatoly
A drop of egg white. Nomination: Microimages. Description: A drop of egg white under a microscope following 10 seconds in the microwave. The breakdown of protein molecules into fragments leads to their crystallization and the appearance of complex structures in a drop. Author: Gribkov Mikhail
Office paper. Nomination: Microimages. Description: The image was obtained using a scanning electron microscope. Field of view 100 micrometers. Author: Somov Pavel
The crew of “Mir-2”. Nomination: People in science. Description: The crew of “Mir-2” – Doctor of Technical Sciences. Yu.B. Bashkuev, master of underwater aerobatics Hero of Russia E.S. Chernyaev and academician M.I. Kuzmin took their jobs. On the slopes of the Akademichesky underwater ridge, they will have to work out a difficult but fruitful day. Author: Korotruchko Vladimir
Crystals of beta-alanine. Nomination: Microimages. Description: Polarized light photograph of beta-alanine crystals taken through a microscope at approximately 100x magnification. Author: Gaynutdinov Bulat
Moss cells in polarized light. Nomination: Microimages. Description: The cells of this moss have very thick cell walls made of cellulose, which has the property of double refraction of light. Due to this, when installing polarizing filters and a compensation plate on a microscope, you can get different colors of parts of the moss. Author: Savitsky Andrey
Newborn praying mantis. Category: Nature. Description: The photo was taken during the expedition of the Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences in the North Caucasus. Author: Doronina Marina
Butterfly scales. Nomination: Microimages. Description: Scales on the wing of a butterfly in an electron microscope (software colorization). Author: Gribkov Mikhail
Prisoners of the amber dungeon. Nomination: Microimages. Description: The new author’s technology allows you to photograph inclusions in amber, without affecting the sample with high detail and color reproduction. Pictured are ancient mosquitoes in Baltic amber (40 million years old). Author: Gribkov Mikhail
Surface of charcoal. Nomination: Microimages. Author: Klepnev Alexander
computer syndrome
Nobody argues with the fact that if you look at the electronic screen for a long time, your eyes get tired. There is a so-called “computer visual syndrome” – a headache, eyes turn red, dryness, itching and burning appear in them, or, on the contrary, they water. This is due to the fact that when we work at a computer for a long time, we look at the screen for a long time from a close, fixed distance or at an inappropriate angle.
At the same time, we unconsciously blink less often. All this leads to the fact that the eyes get tired from the excessive brightness of the light emitted by the screen.
To prevent this from happening, use the 20-20-20 rule: Every 20 minutes, take a 20-second break and try to focus on objects that are 20 feet (6 meters) away from you. In this case, it is better to look at distant objects through a window in daylight. Why? Because there are suspicions that one of the possible reasons for the development of myopia may be a lack of sunlight.
sunlight
Children and teenagers who read a lot or sit at a computer a lot during the day get very little solar radiation as a result. According to the authors reviewdevoted to the study of environmental factors that may increase the risk of myopia, there is a clear link between this pathology and the lack of sunlight.
How showed another study seems to suggest that solar radiation (especially its high-energy blue and violet spectra) stimulates the release of the hormone dopamine in retinal amacrine cells. This inhibits the growth of the eyeball, thus preventing its elongation leading to myopia.
There are also experimental confirmation that violet light can prevent the development of myopia in various animals, including monkeys.
In short, everything points to the fact that neither books nor electronic devices are directly to blame for the worldwide epidemic of myopia. They simply help children to be outside less often and exposed to less sunlight.
Read also:
Ophthalmology of the 21st century: what’s new in eye treatment?
How to provide first aid for a chemical eye burn
The ophthalmologist explained how to save eyes from fatigue
