Dr Nazif Mohammed, an ophthalmologist at the Ghana Health Service’s Eye Care Unit, has urged parents to limit their children’s screen usage because it can lead to myopia.

He stated that this was critical since excessive screen time could harm children’s vision, which could lead to a variety of visual difficulties in the future.

Dr Mohammed, who oversees Data at the Unit, told the Ghana News Agency in an interview that parents should pay attention to the disturbing trend, which may also impact adults.

Myopia, also referred to as nearsightedness, is a condition in which an object close to the eye is seen clearly, whereas objects farther away appear blurred.

Symptoms including squinting, blurred vision, headaches, blinking excessively, or rubbing excessively, are common complaints associated with prolonged screen use.

Dr. Mohammed stated that a recent case study found that children, particularly those in wealthy schools, had a higher prevalence of the disease than those in less well-off schools.

He stated
that, while screen usage is a beneficial method of education for young children, they must be closely monitored.

‘Parents sometimes need to allow children to play and walk around to look at things from afar. Other than that, the constant exposure to things closer could cause myopia,’ he added.

The ophthalmologist encouraged the public to avoid sedentary lifestyles to decrease diabetes-related ocular issues.

He stated more cases of allergic conjunctivitis are being recorded lately, especially in children, and cautioned the public to be careful of this.

Allergic conjunctivitis is an allergic reaction that affects the eye. Although not contagious, this type of eye problem can cause discomfort and aggravation to sufferers.

It usually affects both eyes. The main symptoms of allergic conjunctivitis include itchy eyes, increased tearing, red or pink eyes, and mild swelling of the eyelids.

Dr Mohammed urged parents to take children who have a habit of robbing their eyes to the hospital because they may have all
ergies.

‘Understand that because it is an allergic reaction, the symptoms will not go after one treatment because it could be that the child is not reacting to just one allergy,’ he added.

Source: Ghana News Agency