Many people may not be aware that their eyes can get sunburned when they are hanging out on the beach, fishing, or doing other outdoor activities. As much as adult eyes are sensitive to sunlight, a child’s eyes, especially a toddler or infant’s, are even more sensitive.
If your family enjoys the outdoors, use these four tips to protect your children’s eyesight.
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Buy Sunglasses with UV Protection
If you’re going outdoors with your child on a sunny day, you both should be wearing sunglasses. However, the sunglasses need ultraviolet, or UV, protection of over 95 percent. If it has less than that, don’t bother buying them.
Children’s sunglasses should have a tag that informs you about their amount of UV protection. Don’t assume having dark lenses on the sunglasses will be enough to protect your kids’ eyes as they can do more damage if there isn’t UV protection in them.
Get Goggles for the Pool
When your child goes into a swimming pool, they should be wearing goggles. The chlorine in pools can be very irritating to eyes, but goggles will help protect them. Also, swimming with them on allows your kids to open their eyes when swimming to see how close they are to the wall.
When looking at swim goggles for your kids, make sure they have UV protection if they swim in an outdoor pool. Encourage them to wear their goggles in the lake or ocean water as well to prevent bacteria and debris from getting into their eyes.
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Put a Hat on Them
It can be difficult to keep sunglasses on a baby’s face, so you should put a hat on your child as well. A wide brim hat that covers their face should be enough for protecting the eyes of babies and toddlers. It can also help cover their necks to protect their skin from sunburns.
When you’re heading to the lake, beach, or the pool, try to pick a spot with shade. If one isn’t available, set up a beach tent to give your kids a place to rest out of the sun. To learn about the features of beach tents, read more at BeachRated.
Encourage Outdoor Play to Improve Eyesight
Children struggling with myopia, or nearsightedness, should be encouraged to play outdoors. It can help correct their eyesight according to two studies from Denmark and Taiwan. However, the time of day is important too.
The sun is at its brightest during the day from about 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., so you should encourage your kids to be outdoors earlier in the morning or sometime after two in the afternoon. Allow them to be exposed to sunlight every day to help them see better.
Although playing outdoors is necessary to better your child’s health, you should take some of these precautions to protect your children’s eyesight.
Not protecting the eyes has long-term consequences like cataracts and age-related macular degeneration. By protecting their eyes, you can help them avoid these diseases starting in their infancy.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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