How Parents Can Address the Rising Cases of Childhood Myopia

As your child grows and develops, it’s crucial they have healthy eyesight to improve their learning abilities and overall quality of life. However, an NPR article reveals a growing eye health concern among children: myopia rates have steadily increased throughout the years. In the United States alone, the prevalence of myopia has soared from 25% in 1971 to about 42% in 2017, with a significant portion being children who are nearsighted increasingly earlier in life.

Since myopia can progress and cause other vision impairments in later life, parents must learn to prevent or manage this eye condition through proper vision care. Below, we take a closer look at the risk factors of myopia and highlight how parents can teach their children to adopt healthy habits.

Risk factors of childhood myopia

Myopia, also known as nearsightedness or shortsightedness, is an eye disorder characterized by an abnormality in the eyeball length or cornea structure. When an individual’s eyeball is too long or their cornea is too curved, the eye may focus light rays in front of the retina instead of directly on it. As a result, they can see close-up objects clearly, but objects farther away may look blurry or unfocused.

Besides genetics and family history, the rise in childhood myopia cases is also associated with increased screen time. As children’s eyesight is still developing, spending too much time in front of screens can cause their eyes to prioritize near vision over distance vision, thus contributing to shortsightedness. 

Fortunately, the eye care tips in the following section can help manage the development or progression of myopia.

Eye care tips to prevent or manage myopia

Schedule routine eye exams

A comprehensive eye exam is crucial to diagnosing myopia or nearsightedness, mainly through tests for visual acuity to measure vision at different distances and refraction to determine their prescription. Visual acuity eye tests can also detect eye conditions like amblyopia or lazy eye, which typically arise during early childhood. If possible, a slit lamp examination can also be performed to assess the structures of the eye from a three-dimensional point of view.

Because vision can change over time as the eye grows during childhood, school-age children are advised to get their eyes checked at least once every year. If myopia is detected early, the qualified optometrist can help manage or delay progression through appropriate treatment options, such as eye therapy and prescription glasses.

Use proper eyewear

Screen time has been identified as one of the risk factors for myopia, so parents can help protect their children’s vision by making them wear blue light glasses. Eyewear retailer Eyebuydirect explains that blue light glasses can preserve visual comfort and provide digital protection by filtering the amount of blue light emitted by electronic devices like computers, tablets, and smartphones. 

Thus, the online retailer offers diverse options for blue light filtering lenses for its affordable frames, such as EBDBlue 360 to reduce screen glare and SightRelax to relieve eye strain. While blue light glasses can serve as protective eyewear, myopia management can come in the form of special lenses like those launched by Shamir Optimee, which aim to slow axial length among children through a defocus technology integrated into the lens.

Spend more time outdoors

Lastly, the adverse effects of prolonged screen time on children’s eye health can also be addressed by spending more time outdoors. Research shows that well-arranged green spaces like parks and playgrounds can be linked to a slower progression of school-aged myopia. 

Besides helping children spend less time in front of screens, sunlight exposure through sports and outdoor recreation can inhibit axial elongation — one of the determinants of myopia — while providing other health benefits like improved mood and mental health.

Overall, vision care through eye exams and eyewear can be complemented by increased time outdoors to limit the development of childhood myopia and ensure healthy vision as your child grows older.