to leave the light on for my toddler - and should i turn it off later?

[SlightlyItchyBraStrap]

DS 26 months asked me to leave his light on when he went to bed just now. I did - and he's fallen asleep - but would it be reasonable to turn it off later? Don't want him waking up scared, but he's not usually scared.... But don't really want to set a precedent for sleeping with the lights on all night.

Anyone have something similar with their toddlers?

supposed to be bad for the eyes if you have slept with a light on before the age of 2

thebody penny that's a massive assumption based on what evidence???

Here's the first couple of links from Google:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-12181853

cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/65/23/11174.abstract

Disclaimer: I know the internet is not entirely correct and I am not a scientist

More relevantly, I feel that it is normal (in every sense of the word) for it to be dark when we sleep. We always sleep at night and it has always been dark at night. A few million years of evolution has probably reinforced this link quite significantly.

Back to the original point - don't teach your kids that the dark is a bad/scary/unpleasant/avoidable thing for no good reason.

I didnt teach mine that dark was bad but ds especially got scared of it anyway. He has a nightlight but the door is still closed and the main light is off. The bathroom light is left on so the hall is lit up if they need to go to the toilet.

There is nothing "bad" about wanting a light on when you sleep. I prefer a low level of light myself. That doesn't make me odd; it's just a matter of personal preference.

Its better for the body to sleep in dark...some hormones are triggered by the dark which shuts of the wanting to wee response