A tip for children to prevent nearsightedness

Out with the carrots and in with sunlight. Well, kind of. A new study about nearsightedness found that spending more time outside early in life may better a person’s ability to see from a distance as an adult.

Authors of the study suspect the sun’s ultraviolet B rays, also called UVB, may play a role in reducing nearsightedness.

The study was published Dec. 1 in the journal, JAMA Ophthalmology, and was led by European researchers with roughly 3,000 European adult participants. The study wasn't designed to prove cause-and-effect, it only showed an association.

The study’s findings were summarized by MedlinePlus Health, a project of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

The study found sunlight exposure between ages 14 and 29 was associated the highest reduction in odds of nearsightedness as an adult.

Various countries around the world are seeing ballooning rates of nearsightedness among children – close to 80 to 90 percent in East Asia, for example.

Genetic factors are known to cause nearsightedness, but that accounts for a tiny fraction of cases. The recent study and other research have found that more-educated people have more nearsightedness.

Nonetheless, UVB rays are still damaging to eyes. So it could be something else from being outside that affects nearsightedness.

One possibility: brighter light outside releases dopamine, which could help nearsightedness.

This story was originally published December 5, 2016 at 7:28 AM with the headline "A tip for children to prevent nearsightedness."