The boy's parents divorced last year and he lives with his grandparents. To keep him from feeling lonely, his father bought him an iPad last summer. He has been fascinated with the "almighty game player" ever since, Zhang said.

Zhang was unaware of the damage tablet computers could do to the kindergartner's eyes until he started complaining about eye pain recently.

A micro blog post about a 4-year-old becoming nearsighted from playing too much with his iPad stirred an online sensation - it has been forwarded more than 26,000 times.

"Kids are fascinated with playing games, reading fairytales and watching cartoons on iPads, but their eyes have become victims of the 'poison Apple'," read one micro blog post on March 5.

Eye specialists warn parents to keep children from constantly playing with electronic products.

IPads shine with bright colors, which is a strong visual stimulus, said Tang Dongrun, head of the ophthalmology department at Tianjin First Central Hospital.

"The muscle that adjusts the pupil remains highly tensed to adapt to changes of light. And the flicker of the electronic screen intensifies the frequent movements of the muscle," Tang said.

Moreover, children are more susceptible to eye injuries because their optical system is still developing, Tang said.

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