Caution is better than short-sightedness!
Although the study situation is not yet 100 per cent clear, the trend is quite clear: there are more and more short-sighted children.
Why is that? It most likely has to do with the fact that children no longer spend as much time outside and therefore the time spent looking into the distance is decreasing. Instead, children spend too much time indoors, use media for too long and look at their smartphones too much. It is assumed that this promotes short-sightedness.
The smartphone again ... it just keeps popping up in our videos and factsheets. And indeed, one of the major tasks of the current generation of parents is to maintain a healthy level of media and smartphone use - and above all to make sure that the children go outside!
The recommendation for preventing short-sightedness is to spend at least 80 to 120 minutes outside per day.
Once again, there is still no conclusive evidence on the subject. But there are clear trends that make it worthwhile to avoid this risk. "Better safe than sorry" or "Caution is better than short-sightedness".
Further interesting tips
Social media
Media education and media literacy is a topic that keeps us busy - and will continue to do so. Digital media is playing an increasingly important role in our children's everyday lives. It is therefore becoming increasingly important that we adults stay up-to-date and keep thinking about what we need to do to support our children.
Sitting
It's a small topic - but one that I get asked about very, very often. It's about the question: When is a baby allowed to sit?
U5 screening
Preventive medical check-ups are an important topic for parents. When it comes to the U5, the child is six months old and they already know some of the key elements of these appointments.