Embargoed until:
Publicly released:
2024-08-14 01:00
Getting kids out in the midday sunlight for at least 15 minutes could help them avoid needing glasses, say Chinese researchers. The team strapped close to 3000 kids with smartwatches and kept track of how long they were outdoors, and compared the results with their eye health. They found the kids who spent at least 15 minutes outside in the bright sun – at least the brightness of a midday sun on a clear day – to be less likely to experience a shift towards nearsightedness. While this kind of study cannot directly prove that the sun helped prevent the kids’ eyesight degrading, it’s probably still a good idea to get your kids out for a bit of daylight.
Journal/conference: JAMA Network Open
Link to research (DOI): 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.24595
Organisation/s: Tongji University, Shanghai, China
Funder: This study was supported in part by Key R&D Program of Ministry of Science and Technology
(grants 2021YFC2702100 and 2021YFC2702104), National Natural Science Foundation of China (grants
82273648 and 82171100), Excellent Academic Leader of Shanghai Science and Technology Commission (grant
22XD1422900), Talent Program of Shanghai Municipal Health and Health Commission (grant 2022XD032), Youth
Program of Shanghai Municipal Health and Health Commission (grants 20214Y0424), and Public Health
Outstanding Talent of Shanghai Municipal Health and Health Commission (grant GWVI-11.2-YQ20).
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