Around one in three children worldwide are short-sighted, a new study has found.
People with short-sightedness, also called myopia or near-sightedness, can see close-up objects clearly, like the words you’re reading right now. Anything far away, though, and it’s a blurry mess.
But researchers have found that children’s eyes have become so bad that myopia may soon become a ‘global health burden’ for young people.
By 2050, according to a study published yesterday in the British Journal of Ophthalmology, the global prevalence of myopia is set to top 740 million cases in children or about four in 10. That’s a lot of glasses to buy.
The researchers found that the prevalence of myopia tripled between 1990 and 2023, rising from 24% in 1990-2000 to 25% in 2001-10, 30% in 2011-19 and 36% in 2020-23.
The highest rates are in Asia. About 85% of children in Japan and 73% in South Korea are short-sighted, while 15% of youngsters are in the UK, Ireland and the US.
The fewest were in Paraguay and Uganda, at about 1%.
Researchers combed through decades’ worth of reports and government files that covered cases of myopia in 5,410,945 children across all six continents to carry out one of the largest studies of the eye condition to date.
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Medically speaking, myopia happens because the eyeball gradually grows longer, front to back, Dr Janice Lam, consultant paediatric ophthalmologist at the National University Hospital, Singapore, told Metro.co.uk.
‘Hence, light rays from an object at infinity converge and focus in front of the retina. As a result, individuals with myopia will experience blurring of vision when viewing objects at a distance and will require optical correction to see clearly,’ she explains.
‘Studies show that high myopia individuals for instance are 845 times more likely to get MMD, alongside retinal detachment, cataract, glaucoma and visual impairment in adulthood.’
‘The more the eye elongates, the greater the risk of irreversible loss of vision later in life,’ John Bolger, who runs the Myopia Control Clinic for Children in London and has treated people with the eye disorder for 10 years, adds.
At what age can short-sightedness start?
Usually between six and 13 years old, according to the NHS. Signs of myopia in youngsters can include headaches, excessive blinking, eye rubbing, dry eyes, tiredness and crankiness.
‘For children, this means struggling to see the blackboard in school, missing out on important visual cues during sports, or feeling limited in activities they enjoy,’ says Dr Emilia Pasiah, a board-certified physician practising at St Frances Medical Centre and Northridge Regional Medical Center in Los Angeles.
What causes myopia?
‘The exact cause of myopia is not fully understood, but there are a number of known myopia risk factors, such as family history and environmental (lifestyle) factors,’ Dr Lam, who is also an assistant professor at the Department of Ophthalmology, National University of Singapore, adds.
‘Children of two parents with myopia have a higher risk of developing the condition compared to those with one myopic parent. If one parent has myopia, the child’s risk for developing myopia is around 1.5 times greater. If both parents are shortsighted, the child’s risk for myopia is 2.7 times greater.’
The number of people with myopia has surged in recent decades. Genes, however, take centuries to change. So experts like Bolger say that the environment is likely behind this.
Chiefly, outdoor light – or rather, a lack of it.
What causes myopia?
‘The exact cause of myopia is not fully understood, but there are a number of known myopia risk factors, such as family history and environmental (lifestyle) factors,’ Dr Lam, who is also an assistant professor at the Department of Ophthalmology, National University of Singapore, adds.
‘Children of two parents with myopia have a higher risk of developing the condition compared to those with one myopic parent. If one parent has myopia, the child’s risk for developing myopia is around 1.5 times greater. If both parents are shortsighted, the child’s risk for myopia is 2.7 times greater.’
The number of people with myopia has surged in recent decades. Genes, however, take centuries to change. So experts like Bolger say that the environment is likely behind this.
Chiefly, outdoor light – or rather, a lack of it.
‘Natural daylight is essential for our eyes to develop naturally, without the eye needing to compensate its natural and normal shape,’ Bolger, the chief surgeon and data scientist at the private My i-Clinic, says.
‘Twenty-first-century urban lifestyles are making children and young people myopic because they spend most of their time indoors, glued to screens, missing out on the essential benefits of natural light,’ explains Bolger.
A lack of outdoor spaces, ‘stranger danger’ worries and the allure of electronic devices are among the reasons why children spend more time indoors.
Even schooling has been casually linked to myopia, though researchers agree that genetic predisposition is a more powerful predictor of short-sightedness.
Education may explain why Asia is seeing a sharp spike in myopia cases in children. Asia, which has seen rapid economic growth, is expected to have the highest prevalence of myopia, according to yesterday’s paper, seeing rates of 52% in 2030, 62% in 2040 and 69% in 2050.
While in Africa, where schooling generally starts when children are six, myopia is seven times less common than in Asia.
There’s another pretty big reason for the increase if yesterday’s analysis is any indication, adds Dr Pasiah. ‘The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated this issue,’ she says.
‘Lockdowns, virtual/online learning, and reduced outdoor activities forced children to spend even more time on screens. I have seen the impact of this firsthand, with more parents concerned about their child’s worsening eyesight during this time.’
