How does reading in the dark hurt your eyes?!


Question: How does reading in the dark hurt your eyes?
I like to read in the dark. How is this bad for my eye sight?

Answers:

Reading in the dark DOES NOT hurt your eyes. It may cause eyestrain and headaches, but does not make your vision better or worse. I have been doing it for years. I can read with just the light from my alarm clock. I have great night vision.



Although no conclusive scientific research has shown it, but there are anecdotal evidence that prolong 'night-vision' can cause or worsen myopia (short-sightedness).

It's interesting to note that a very high number of Inuits (indigenous people living up near the North Pole) are highly myopic... it's possible the lack of sunlight for 6months/year is a contributing factor.
Less seriously... ever wonder why Bats are so blind?...

Lastly, there are 2 systems of light receptors in your eyes.. the Rods and Cones.
Cones work to see small detail and colour and need lots of light... they're what you want to use when you want to see to read.
Rods work well when there is dim light, their job is to detect motion and peripheral vision.

If you read in the 'dark' or dim light, to see clearly, your CONES will struggle... (like driving up a hill in high gear)... if it's soo dim that your eyes switch to RODs, then you won't see clearly.



I don't know where these crazy stories come from but, maybe because kid's eyes are much better able to see in dim light than adults, kids can easily read under very poor lighting conditions. The adults see the kids reading in what is preceived by them as "darkness" and think they are straining their eyes when in actuality they can see just fine. Although reading in dim light makes it harder for your brain to interpret the images from your eyes, it won't make you need glasses.



Reading in the dark is really bad.Reading in low light does not damage eyes, but rather causes eye strain.



It hurts my eyes. I am getting to where I need more light, and I am near 24 so




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