Don’t let this happen to your child. Please read on, most families have laser pointers at home.
You may use one for work or use it to tease your cats – but they are not toys.
In Australia, a 14-year-old boy has lost 75% of his vision because of a laser pointer.
The boy only pointed the laser at his eye for a brief moment, and that was all it took to burn his retina.
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According to reports, the boy didn’t experience any pain, but his vision was diminished almost immediately.
The tragic part of this is the damage cannot be fixed – ever.
Optometrists hope that as the swelling goes down, maybe some of his vision will be restored, but that remains unclear.
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Not all lasers that you can buy at the store can do this type of damage, according to the FDA, lasers that emit more than 5mW (milliwatt) of power can, however.
A laser that has a power density of 1mW is brighter that the sun, according to LaserPointerSafety.com.
Many countries, including the UK, limit the power of laser pointers to 1mW or less.
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But lasers up to 5mW are still considered safe for public use.
The bottom line is that is important that you know what kind of laser you have and the power that it gives off.
Most of the lasers that are available commercially will only cause temporary blind spots, not permanent damage like the 14-year-old mentioned earlier.
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But, as a general rule, you should never point a laser at anyone’s face to avoid injury.
Share away, people.