Authors of a new study from the University of Western Australia said the main culprit behind the world’s myopia epidemic is computer screens, not mobile phones or tablets.
Senior research fellow Dr Samantha Sze-Yee Lee from the Lions Eye Institute used data from the Raine Study of 600 young adults to discern the types of digital screens contributing to myopia progression. The data showed progression was faster in those who reported six or more hours per day of computer usage, compared to those with low computer use. Time spent on mobile phones did not have any effect.
“The reason for this difference may be due to peripheral defocus,” Dr Lee said. “When you look at your mobile phone, everywhere in our peripheral vision, with the exception of the small phone screen, is further away and relatively blurred. The brain registers things are generally far away and there is no need for the eye to become more short-sighted.”
