Since the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, the amount of time we spend in front of digital screens has increased highly. It has now become common for people to sit in front of their computer screens for 10-12 hours continuously and for students to sit in front of laptop, mobile phone and tablet screens for 7-8 hours. The effect it is having on the eyes of people is not unknown. But the most vulnerable population who are having trouble in their vision and eye health are the small children who are forced to watch the digital screens because of E-learning. These gadgets injure children of all ages by releasing brief, high-energy waves that can enter the eyes and induce photochemical damage to the retinal cells, exposing them to a variety of eye diseases ranging from dry eye to age-related macular degeneration. Digital Vision Syndrome (DVS) or computer vision syndrome is the collective term for it and the number of children suffering from DVS is increasing day-by-day. 

Our children are increasingly using digital screens in the present world. Furthermore, the introduction of endless e-classes for such children has placed an undue strain on their already overworked eyes. As a result of the current trend of unregulated e-learning, we are inadvertently pushing a generation of children into a higher risk of DVS. Experts have suggested only 30 hours of screen time for pre-primary children, divided into two 45-minute lessons, and four 45-minute lessons for grades 1 to 12, according to parents. Many schools ignore the instructions, which aren’t legally binding anyhow. Excessive usage of devices is also causing mental health difficulties in some parents. They grumble, “Children who are already caged up at home are becoming irritable and restless. They are unable to concentrate on their work after their online lectures and suffer from headaches.” Opticians in the city too say more cases of children with complaints of eye strain are coming to them.

Children suffering from DVS can have adverse physical health and it could impact them badly, making them vulnerable to eye and ears strain, obesity, disturbed sleeping patterns. Children cannot leave their education and not learn online. So the only way to tackle this is to maintain a safe distance from the online screens, practice normal blinking, the use of appropriate lighting, adjusting image parameters (resolution, text size, contrast, luminance. The 20-20-20 rule can also help to prevent the strain on eyes due to staring at a computer or phone screen for a long period of time.