Outdoor Games Keep Children's Eyes in Good Health

A new research conducted by the University of Bristol suggests that children who play outdoors are less likely to suffer for eye sight problems

Short-sightedness is the most common eye disease many people across the globe face.  More than 25-50 per cent of young people in the West and up to 80 per cent of young people in parts of south-east Asia are affected by this problem. And this figure only doubles with each passing year. A recent study conducted by researchers from the University of Bristol suggests that playing outdoors can prevent a child from facing such an illness.

Previously, many researchers have said that the amount of time a child spends on outdoor activities has a direct effect on the child's eyesight. However, it was unclear whether this was due to physical activity, or to simply being outside. Hence, Drs Cathy Williams (Bristol) and Jez Guggenheim (Cardiff) and their colleagues at the University of Bristol addressed this issue by following the occurrence of short-sightedness in over 7,000 boys and girls at ages 7, 10, 11, 12 and 15. The time they spent outdoors was measured by asking the children's parents to fill in a questionnaire. Their physical activity was recorded objectively using an activity monitor they wore for a week at age 11. The researchers found that children who spent more time outdoors at age 8-9 were only about half as likely to become short-sighted by the age of 15.

 "We're still not sure why being outdoors is good for children's eyes, but given the other health benefits that we know about we would encourage children to spend plenty of time outside, although of course parents will still need to follow advice regarding UV exposure," Dr Cathy Williams, in the University's School of Social and Community Medicine, said, in a statement. "There is now a need to carry out further studies investigating how much time outside  is needed to protect against short-sightedness, what age the protective effect of spending time outside is most marked and how the protective effect actually works, so that we can try and reduce the number of children who become short-sighted."

Dr Peter Allen, College of Optometrists council member and Principal Lecturer and Director of Clinics at Anglia Ruskin University, added: "As a College we always welcome research that improves our understanding of eye health. Myopia, or short-sightedness, affects a significant number of people in UK so any findings that can help shed more light on why some people develop this and others don't is hugely valuable. This research is particularly exciting because it's the first to identify that simply spending time outside (regardless of what outdoor activities you're engaged in) reduces the risk of becoming short sighted."

The findings of the study have been published in the journal Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science (IOVS), recently.