EMC pediatric ophthalmologist Natalia Bosha acted as an expert in the January issue of the magazine "Happy Parents", for which she wrote an article about the development of vision in the youngest children.
The eyes of newborn babies are not arranged like those of adults, the differences fade by the age of 7. Vision develops especially actively in the first months of life. In order for adaptation to be easy, parents need to follow a few simple rules.
First of all, it is useful for parents to know how the child's eyesight should develop normally, because then it will be possible to notice the violations in time and consult a doctor. Be prepared for the fact that changes happen quite quickly. So, if a newly born child can only distinguish between light and darkness, then in just a few days he already sees vague outlines of objects, and on the blurred contour of his mother's face he distinguishes spots in place of eyes and mouth. A week-old baby reacts to bright light by constricting his pupils and closing his eyelids. Starting from 2-3 weeks, the baby tries to stop looking at a fairly large object located at a distance of 25-30 cm from it. At this point, the baby may develop a so-called "physiological strabismus." There is no need to be scared, because this is a variant of the norm.
Newborn babies have eyes 3 mm shorter than those of an adult, their cornea is thicker, and the lens is almost round. Because of this, the child is born farsighted: visual acuity is normally plus 3-4 diopters.
At 1 month old, the baby is able to steadily fix his gaze on the eyes of an adult. At 2-3 months old, the child is already watching a bright toy located at a distance of 50-60 cm with two eyes, following it with his gaze in all directions: up, down, left, right.
At about the same time, the baby begins to recognize his mother and other family members from a distance of 2-3 meters: he smiles, pulls his arms, and kicks his legs. Eye movements become coordinated. Physiological strabismus should be gone by the age of 6 months.
The first child begins to distinguish three colors: red, yellow and green, therefore, rattles, toys and mobiles should have the appropriate color before 3 months. In the future, the palette can and should be expanded.
At six months old, a baby can look from a nearby object to a distant one and back without losing sight of them. If the toy approaches his face too fast, he starts blinking. The child is already looking at his reflection in the mirror, and if he needs to see an object, he will pick it up and bring it to his eyes.
At 8-12 months old, the baby actively searches for objects that disappear from his field of vision, and his facial expression changes depending on the facial expressions of adults. The child confidently distinguishes "his own" from "strangers" and willingly goes to his family only.
In order for a child's eyesight to develop harmoniously, it is necessary to think over the lighting of the nursery in detail. Since the baby sees worse than adults, his need for daylight is much greater. Based on this window, the rooms where the baby spends the most time should ideally face east or southeast. In addition, such localization will minimize artificial lighting, which quickly tires the eyes.
But there is no need to completely abandon the additional illumination. There should be at least three artificial lights. The main role will be played by the chandelier. Its power should not exceed 60-100 watts. It is better to choose the lampshades in such a configuration that the light is scattered not down, but up, onto the ceiling.
Additional lighting should be provided by sconces, a floor lamp or a table lamp, and a night light equipped with a brightness control will be responsible for a calm atmosphere before bedtime. At the same time, the lampshades of all lamps must have a matte surface. It is better to install wall and floor models away from the crib, ideally to the left of it, so that the light does not fall on the baby's face. Incandescent lamps or energy-saving equivalents that give a yellow or white glow are best suited for a nursery. LED or fluorescent models will not work. The former create a narrowly focused and unnatural light for the human eye, while the latter flicker, which makes vision harder.
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