14 DAY TRIAL // When you were a kid, your parents told you not to spend too much time watching TV or it will ruin your eyesight. Now, a lot of researchers are telling us something similar, don’t over-use the tablet, or you’ll certainly need to book a visit to the ophthalmologist. A new study suggests that dogma is completely wrong.
Scientists at the University of California made a number of test subjects (baseball players) use a tablet-based perceptual learning app for 25 minutes a day, four days out of seven, reports LifeHacker.
The subjects were expected to find and select certain patterns, which were designed taking into consideration the stimuli to which neurons in the human brain (in the visual cortex) respond more easily.
“The goal of the program was to train the brain to better respond to inputs that it gets from the eyes. As with most other aspects of our function, our potential is greater than our normative level of performance,” explained researcher Aaron Seitz.
“When we go to the gym and exercise, we’re able to increase our physical fitness, it’s the same thing with the brain. By exercising our mental processes we can promote our mental fitness.”
The results of the study, were actually pretty spectacular, so after using the app for a full two months, each baseball player’s vision improved. They reported being able to see the ball better, having improved peripheral vision and suffering from less eye-strain.
Nevertheless, the implications of this study could extend beyond the world of sports and into that of the normal folk.
“This approach has great potential to aid many individuals that rely on vision including not only athletes looking to optimize their visual skills but also individuals with low vision engaged in everyday tasks.”
So instead of scolding your child for spending too much time on the tablet, you better make sure he/she has the right apps installed on it.