Did I cause my child’s short sightedness?

[heartbroken22]

7 year old got glasses today left eye is 1.25 and right eye is 0.5. I became short sighted at 17. However I think I’ve caused hers earlier by letting her have her iPad, not having a perfect diet etc.

Definitely a lot of close up activities like screen time and the genetic factor of you being short sighted all are factors.
To lessen it, get your child to spend more time outside- much easier now it's a bit warmer and the days are longer.

Unlikely. Perhaps you spotted it quicker because of her using the iPad etc.

My cousin was very short sighted but it wasn't picked up until she was 6yo because she was good at hiding it, and they just assumed she wasn't getting reading as quickly as they'd hoped.
Now we look more at if there's a cause. You might well have been picked up sooner too nowadays.

No you didn’t. Ignore anyone who says you did-it’s just one of those things. And wearing glasses isn’t a disaster.

I’ve been short sighted since I was 4 and iPads didn’t even exist then! No

Phones and iPads can add to shortsightedness but so can reading books - any activity where you’re focused on a short distance for a period of time. Some is also hereditary.

I’ve been wearing glasses since I was 4 and no iPads back then. My kids all wear glasses at least some of the time but their eyesight is much better than mine.

Theres some evidence that vitamin a and omega 3 supplementation can help protect the eyes as they grow and there are new glasses and lenses pathways that can stop short sightedness developing. You've done the dest for her by getting her glasses she needs. Don’t beat yourself up, its one of those things

I became short-sighted at 7 and the only screen time I had back then was a little bit of TV, though I read a lot. My dad is also very short-sighted but my sister has always had perfect vision.

I have two children who have both had similar amounts of screen time. One is short-sighted and one isn’t.

If it's not ipads then it's not too much of a leap to work out that reading a lot - a close up activity is a factor. Optometrists suggest outdoor activities to balance out those factors.

We're all short sighted in my family. I have aunties and cousins all wearing glasses since childhood. We all cope very well. We just wear glasses and carry on.