As the new school year kicks off, eye health is becoming a top priority for both parents and children. What steps can families take to ensure their eyes receive the care they need? Establishing good habits for eye use and protection is essential for preserving distance vision and preventing damage. Here are some practical tips worth considering.

First, let’s discuss posture. Improper sitting positions—such as slouching or hunching over while studying—can bring a child’s eyes too close to screens, resulting in eye strain. A useful guideline to remember is the “fist, foot, inch” rule. Maintain a fist’s width between the chest and the desk, keep eyes at least one foot away from books, and ensure that the distance from fingers holding a pencil to the tip is about one inch.

Another effective technique is the “20-20-20” rule. Every 20 minutes of screen time, children should look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds. This simple practice helps give their eyes a much-needed break.

It’s also crucial for children to work in well-lit spaces. Parents should create bright and evenly lit reading areas at home and avoid dim lighting. If a space lacks sufficient light, turning on overhead lights or using desk lamps is a good idea. When it comes to electronic devices, minimizing prolonged usage is wise; larger screens for studying are preferable whenever possible.

For casual use of electronics, aim to keep each session under 15 minutes and total usage under one hour per day. When using devices, children should sit at least 70 cm away from computers, 30 cm from mobile phones, and maintain a distance four times the diagonal measurement of TVs.

Nutrition and sleep are also critical for maintaining eye health. Parents should focus on providing a balanced diet rich in protein, calcium, and vitamins. Proteins are essential for repairing and growing eye tissues, while calcium plays a vital role within the eyes. Including fresh fruits and vegetables with plenty of vitamins A, C, and E can greatly benefit eye health. Additionally, limiting sugary snacks and sodas helps prevent eye strain and blood sugar fluctuations, promoting overall well-being.

Adequate sleep is essential for children’s eye health as well. During sleep, children’s eyes can rest, reducing fatigue and other vision-related issues.

Encouraging outdoor activities is one of the simplest and most effective ways to prevent myopia. Studies indicate that increasing outdoor time by just 40 minutes a day can decrease myopia incidence by about 23% over three years. Therefore, children should aim for at least two hours of outdoor activity each day, totaling 14 hours a week. This outdoor time can be broken up throughout the day, incorporating extracurricular activities, outdoor classes, and even walking to school.

It’s important to emphasize the value of sunlight exposure rather than the specific activities undertaken. Simply being outdoors during daylight can help combat myopia, even without structured activities. Choosing the right outdoor locations can also enhance the effectiveness of these activities; bright playgrounds or soccer fields with illumination above 10,000 lux are ideal spaces. Corridors or shaded areas provide good lighting as well, while playgrounds should register brightness above 3,000 lux.

Recent findings show that effective outdoor activities should occur in areas exceeding 2,000 lux for at least 15 minutes. On cloudy or darker days, children may need to spend even longer outdoors to achieve optimal protection for their eyes.

It’s important to keep in mind that eye development varies with age. Parents should pay careful attention to tracking their child’s refractive development. This system can provide valuable insights into a child’s refractive state, distance vision reserves, the need for intervention, and the efficacy of any interventions—ultimately fostering collaboration between doctors and families on tailored myopia management plans.

If monitoring indicates that a child’s distance vision reserves are being depleted too quickly, parents should be vigilant for signs of myopia and seek timely intervention. Regular vision checks every three to six months are recommended, and any abnormalities should prompt a reevaluation of monitoring frequency by a healthcare professional.