Parents do not always keep a close eye on their children when they watch TV. But a child's vision can deteriorate quickly enough if he constantly sits close to the screen. Compliance with simple rules will help keep your baby healthy.
It is possible to allow a child to watch cartoons and children's programs, but it is imperative to follow the recommendations of doctors and experienced teachers. After all, it is much easier to lose sight than to restore later. You may not even notice how the child began to see badly even before school, because the health of the baby is sometimes much more fragile than that of an adult.
What's the best way to watch shows?
Distance from the screen is a very important indicator for maintaining vision. The larger the TV screen, the greater the distance from it should be. So, with an average screen size, you need to seat the child at least three meters away. If the TV is large, it is best to maximize the distance to your baby's eyes. In addition, the child should look at the screen as directly as possible, not from below, otherwise the excess load is no longer only on the eye muscles, but also on the muscles of the neck and spine. Therefore, do not allow your baby to sit on the floor directly in front of the device, it is best to sit him on an armchair or sofa located away from the TV. This rule applies to all types of monitors - conventional, flat, liquid crystal, plasma.
In addition, you should also monitor the lighting in the room, do not allow the child to watch TV programs in the dark or in dim light, so that there is not a very large color contrast between the device and the surrounding space - this can especially strongly affect the fatigue of children's eyes.
When should I watch TV?
What mechanisms occur when a child is exposed to the light of a TV screen and at what age is it allowed to watch various TV programs and cartoons? In the first years of life, the child's vision is still developing, so it is especially vulnerable. When a baby is born, he can see objects and people at a distance of 20-30 cm, while he sees rather indistinctly, he still does not distinguish colors well. But over time, his vision is getting better, in the process of knowing the world, he learns to see objects further, brighter and clearer. This process ends by about 3-4 years, therefore, until that time, it is not recommended for children to look at TV or computer screens at all.
In addition to the physiological reason, there is also a psychological one. Colors, sounds and images of this world are pleasant to the baby, they entertain him, give him food for knowledge. However, overly bright pictures, rapidly changing frames in cartoons can harm the psyche of a small child. He still cannot cope with such a huge amount of information, so he can become overexcited, become more nervous, suffer from sleep disorders or hyperactivity, attention deficit disorder. Cartoons can be shown only when the child is psychologically mature enough.
Moreover, you need to start watching TV with small doses: at first, you can allow the child to watch a short cartoon for no more than 5-10 minutes, from 4 to 7 years old, allow him to spend no more than 30-40 minutes a day behind the screen, take breaks between individual programs. At primary school age, a child should spend no more than 2 hours a day watching television, and in middle and high school, no more than 3 hours.
