Now that the holidays are here, all we want to do is enjoy the precious time with our loved ones. We all care about our family and friends, but others’ eye and optic health is not always a priority. It should be! And it is not too late to make the holidays a vision-friendly time. We are always here to help.
Our kids’ eye doctors have created a handy list of 3 simple things you can do throughout the holidays to ensure your children’s eyes are not at risk.
- Watch holiday movies with background light
Studies continue to show that staring at bright screens – TV, or phone, in a dark place for a long time can result in eye itchiness, dryness, and headaches. In other words, the eyes are forced to focus intensely at a very bright light floating in a sea of darkness. This is an unnatural environment for the eyes and as they try to dilate for the amount of light being taken in, they fatigue incredibly quickly.
Therefore, our kids’ eye doctors recommend “bias- lighting”, namely, backlighting a TV, or a monitor. This simple practice gives your eyes a more natural reference point for colors and contrast in a dark room.
Don’t forget – your children’s eyes are much more sensitive than adults’!
- Don’t let your little ones stay up too late
When children do not get their recommended amount of sleep, it affects more than just their mood. Usually, a lack of sleep is associated with dark circles and puffiness underneath the eyes. However, sleep deprivation, especially long-term, can also have 2 serious negative effects on your children’s’ eye and optic health.
When a child is tired, they can experience eye spasms and twitching throughout the day, which can be frustrating and detrimental to maintaining concentration. Secondly, a sleep-deprived child will have dry and bloodshot eyes, which is painful and can cause irritation. This is particularly dangerous as this irritation and pain can cause the child to rub the eyes, which in turn can result in an eye infection.
- Put those smartphones, iPads, and PC’s away
In our recent article “Blue Light: Should I worry about it? Part 1” we explain how excessive exposure to blue light from electronic devices and LED lights can lead to serious negative effects on your children’s sensitive eyes.
The three common conditions caused by excessive exposure to blue light are eye dryness, digital eye strain, and retina damage. Studies show that eye strain, dryness, headaches, and blurred vision occur after as little as 2 hours of exposure to digital screens.
Keeping this in mind, our recommendation is to plan and organize some activities for your children that will keep them away from the screens. These can be as simple as doing crafts, decorating cookies, or playing board games.
About our Children’s Ophthalmologist in Livingston!
Our exceptional doctors, Amy Lambert, MD, and Rachel Bloom, MD, are both board-certified pediatric ophthalmologists. Dr. Lambert, the founder of Pediatric Eye Associates, LLc, is also a board-certified strabismus surgeon, and Dr. Bloom is additionally fellowship trained.
Our pediatric eye doctors are experts at meeting your children’s eye and vision needs. We pride ourselves on the results we achieve with our patients and we believe the key is not just our medical expertise, but also attitude and patience with the children. Our motto is “to provide the highest quality eye care for children in a setting that is comfortable and reassuring.”
We understand that you will have many questions about our Livingston ophthalmologist, so if any of them are still unanswered, please refer to our FAQs page, or contact us. You can get in touch with us by:
- Visiting our practice
22 Old Short Hills Rd. Lower Level-1,Livingston, New Jersey 07039
Open hours: Monday – Friday 9:00 – 17:00
- Calling us on 973-422-1230
- Submitting the enquiry form on our contact us page
- Checking our facebook page – Pediatric Eye Associates, LLC
The material contained on this site is for informational purposes only and DOES NOT CONSTITUTE THE PROVIDING OF MEDICAL ADVICE, and is not intended to be a substitute for independent professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your health.
