Parents in 2019: “That’s enough screen time!”

Parents in 2020: “Get back in front of that screen right now, class isn’t over yet! And please put the cat down. Your teacher does not need to see your cat, again...”

Our children are in front of screens a lot this year out of necessity. Friends are on FaceTime, extracurricular activities and lessons are streaming on the TV, and school is on the computer. That’s a lot of blue light coming into those little eyeballs and it’s not the best for them. In fact, studies have shown that increased screen time can lead to nearsightedness, dry eyes, eye strain, and headaches. Yikes.

The reality is, we’ve gotten more relaxed about screen time. That’s the downside, but what can we do as parents to help protect our children’s eyes knowing that screen time is our reality? Here are some suggestions:

1. Get outside

When your children have breaks from virtual schooling, get them out into the fresh air. This is good for everyone’s sanity, but it’s also helpful for their eyes. The break and exposure to natural light instead of electronic light will help ease eye strain.

2. Give the screen some space

Make sure those cute little eyes aren’t so close to the screen they could touch it. For remote schooling, set up the computer monitor so that it’s around 18 to 24 inches from their face. Sitting closer can hurt your eyes; our parents weren’t bluffing about that years ago.

3. Set a timer for breaks

Alexa, set a timer for 20 minutes! Robots are great aren’t they? 

However you end up setting a timer, doing it can help give your children a reminder to take a break from the screen and look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds after 20 minutes of screen time. (The 20/20/20 rule.) These little eye breaks can make a big difference and maybe even encourage your children to see the dirty socks they left on the floor across the room.

4. Adjust your settings

Computers, phones, and tablets can all be adjusted so that they are easier on our eyes. Check the settings on your children’s devices to change the brightness, contrast, and the text size as needed. While you’re playing with the settings anyway, make sure you have a security pin on there so kids aren’t cashing out their college funds for Robux.

5. Reminders to blink

No really, we need to remind our children to blink! That might sound like reminding them to breath or reminding them to whine about eating all of their peas, but it actually is important.

When in front of a screen we naturally blink less and that’s harmful for our eyes. Hollering out a few “remember to blinks” throughout the day can help keep your children’s eyes safer, just check to make sure they are on mute first before you start yelling.

6. Blue light blocker glasses

There isn’t evidence to show that blue light from electronics is harmful to your eyes, but blue light blocker glasses are still popular because we don’t know the long term effects of all these screens. Plus these glasses do block a portion of blue light from entering the eye which some people report helps with eye strain. 

Added bonus - you’re teaching your child to be responsible and not lose their glasses which is great practice for when you eventually have to give them keys to the house, or even the car (gasp!)

Reminder: Give your eyes a rest too! As parents we tend to worry way more about our children than ourselves, but all of these suggestions also make good sense for adults. Take care of yourself, your family, and those beautiful baby blues (or browns, greens, or hazels.)