Laser pointers can be quite harmful for children’s eyes and could lead to blurry vision, blind spots, or potentially permanent vision loss. The latest findings found that horseplay among children with laser pointers caused dramatic injury to the retina.
Although eye injuries associated with laser pointers among children are rare, they do take place, so it’s important that parents are aware of the risks related to laser pointer use.
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The main problem is the inaccuracy of labelling on laser pointers. Many labels suggest the light emitted is in the range that is safe for the eyes, but when tested, the pointers were found to radiate much more harmful light. Because you never really know the output of the device, it’s best that you keep it away from children.
The researchers and experts recommend not looking at laser pointers, not pointing them in the eyes, and really not letting your children play with them to completely reduce the risk.
Once the damage occurs there isn’t much that can be done to reverse it, so laser pointer injuries should be prevented as much as possible.