Kids locked down for 6 months more prone to nearsightedness

Kids aged six to eight years who were locked down for six months due to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic are more prone to myopia or nearsightedness, according to a study.

According to Vonne Aquino’s report on “State of the Nation,” the study, which was conducted on more than 1,000 kids in China in 2020, showed that children who were locked down in 2020 are more prone to myopia compared to other children in the past year.

Myopia or nearsightedness is an eye condition in which close objects are clearer while objects far away are blurrier.

“Isa sa mga established na dahilan kung bakit nag pro-progress ang nearsightedness aside from genetics or ‘yung namana is ‘yung near work or ‘yung malapit na gawain,” Dr. Roland Joseph Tan said.

(One of the established reasons for the progression of nearsightedness, aside from genetics, is near work or your work is near your eyes.)

“Katulad ng paggamit ng laptop or ‘yung paggamit ng mga gadgets which are sobrang widely used na ngayon ng mga bata,” he added.

(This includes the use of a laptop or the use of gadgets, which is widely used these days by children.)

Though it is not bad to use gadgets, Tan said they should be used in moderation.

Myopia may lead to a worse eye condition if left alone, such as retinal detachment, which may lead to blindness.

“You establish a schedule. For example, this much time for online education, this much time for online entertainment, and then enough time for physical activities,” he said.

Tan also advised children to get some sunlight from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. as this will help slow down the progression of myopia.

“The sunlight, the radiation from the sun helps with the regulation of the normal growth of the eye din kasi,” Tan said. — Joahna Lei Casilao/DVM, GMA News