3D images are more harmful to children than adults

Visual China for the picture

The movie "Captain America 3" was released in China, and there is no suspense and it is a 3D film. From "Avatar" to the remake of "Titanic", to the "crazy animal city" of young and old, the Chinese cinema has almost become the world of 3D movies. The peculiar visual effects bring a stunning viewing experience, making 3D movies in the Chinese film market, and audiences of all ages. However, while enjoying the wonderful and realistic images on the big screen, many parents also began to worry silently – will the visual effects of 3D cause harm to the child's vision? Is it appropriate to take a child to watch a 3D movie?

In early 2015, France launched a public service advertisement to warn the public that watching too many 3D movies would hurt the children's eyes. The French National Institute of Health and Medicine also proposed that “three-dimensional imaging technology is not recommended for children younger than 6 years old, and children aged 6 to 13 should use 3D stereoscopic imaging techniques.”

In the period when earlier 3D video games began to prevail, Nintendo indicated on the game box that children under the age of 6 should not play 3D video games. This suggestion caused no small concern. In 2011, the French environmental protection organization Robinson Association asked the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research to analyze the scientific data to study the possible harm of 3D video games. The French National Institute of Health and Medical immediately responded to the requirements of the Robinson Association, and not only studied 3D video games, but also expanded the scope of research to 3D pictures and 3D movies.

More than four years have passed. Although the people's wariness and doubts about 3D technology have not been eliminated, the French National Institute of Health and Medicine acknowledges the lack of solid scientific evidence to prove that 3D images can cause harm to the eyes. Dr. Beatrice Cosnel, director of ophthalmology at the Brass Medical Teaching and Medical Center, said, "There is no scientific evidence that 3D images are harmful to vision. But people will feel that 3D images can cause a lot of discomfort. For example, visual fatigue, dry eyes, headaches, etc., especially those with visual problems, will feel particularly uncomfortable, because these images will allow the eyes to constantly adjust the focus."

Why are 3D images more harmful to children than adults? This is mainly because children's vision is not yet mature. For children, the average age of visual acuity is 8 years. Children are born with farsightedness, their eyes are not fully developed, and they need to be adjusted hard to project light onto the retina. And 3D images add to the difficulty of adjustment, which can cause headaches and other uncomfortable feelings. In addition, 4% of children have problems with strabismus, that is, their eyes deviate from the normal direction and do not see the protrusions and depressions of the object. Obviously, for children with strabismus, 3D images cause extra interference to their eyes. In short, 3D images can cause severe vision fatigue in children before adolescence, and even affect the development of the visual system.

It can be seen that the principle of “being careful” advocated by the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research is not nonsense. Dr. Cosnel said, "There is also a difference between 3D and 3D. First of all, compared to the big screen, it is more difficult to see 3D movies on a small screen. Secondly, some 3D images will be more likely to cause vision fatigue, such as images. The faster the transformation speed, the more difficult the eye is to bear. In addition, 3D movies with poor quality will cause more visual fatigue."