A study has found that the eyesight of children worldwide is deteriorating.
A Chinese research team published a paper in the British Journal of Ophthalmology stating that 36% of children globally are now myopic. This figure has tripled since the 1990s.
The rapid rise in childhood myopia has become evident following the COVID-19 pandemic. The research team attributed this trend to increased indoor time and screen exposure due to lockdown policies.
The team suggested that girls, who tend to spend less time outdoors, are more likely to be myopic than boys. They also warned that by 2050, up to half of all children worldwide could be shortsighted.
The study found that 85% of children in Japan and 73% in South Korea have myopia. In contrast, only 15% of children in the U.K. and the U.S. are myopic.
The exceptionally high rates of myopia in children from East Asia have been attributed to early educational practices. For example, education starts at age 2 in Singapore and Hong Kong, significantly straining children’s eye muscles.
In contrast, children in Africa typically start their education between the ages of 6 and 8, resulting in a myopia rate seven times lower than that in Asia.
Meanwhile, myopia is a vision problem that causes difficulty seeing distant objects clearly. It is usually caused by structural changes in the eye or environmental factors. Increasing outdoor activities and reducing screen time are crucial to prevent myopia in children.
The research team emphasized that these preventive measures could help curb the rising incidence of myopia.
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