Keep toddlers off Tablets and SmartPhones and restrict use for pre-teens, says leading optical scientist
Friday, March 6, 2015 @ 5:31 PM
CHILDREN aged two and under should not be allowed to use SmartPhones or Tablets because they can cause irreparable eye damage, say leaders of Spain's General Education Plan for Digital Visual Health 2015-2020.
Dr Celia Sánchez-Ramos, the brains behind the programme, compares letting toddlers near gadgets with LED screens to taking them to the beach without applying sun-screen.
Tablet and SmartPhone screens give off five times more short-wave light than a small child should be exposed to, are extremely harmful for young eyes - and excessive use of LED screens can damage the retina, since its film is still developing and does not filter the light out properly, according to Dr Sánchez-Ramos.
She backs up these warnings by referring to the government of Taiwan - one of the world's greatest technology producers - which announced 10 days ago that any parents who let their under-twos use any type of electronic device would be fined the equivalent of €1,500.
For children over the age of two and up to 12 inclusive, the Digital Visual Health plan in Spain recommends a maximum of two hours a day on SmartPhones or Tablets combined, and that those youngsters who do use them should wear glasses or contact lenses.
Read more at thinkSPAIN.com