What is it?
Myopia is a common condition that affects about 50% of the population. It causes people to struggle to see in the distance without the help of glasses. The amount of people with myopia has been rapidly rising over the past few years and scientists from China and Singapore found that the incidence more than doubled during lockdown and the pandemic.
Once a child becomes myopic it can progress and the prescription can gradually increase, especially during teenage years and growth spurts. Our aim as optometrists is to keep myopic prescriptions as low as possible and prevent them from getting worse as those with highly myopic prescriptions are more likely to develop cataracts and more serious eye conditions such as retinal detachments and glaucoma.
What causes it?
- Digital Devices and Near Work – children who spend more time on prolonged near work or focusing up close at high intensity are more likely to develop myopia.
- Family History – a child is far more likely to develop myopia if one or both parents are myopic.
How to combat it?
- Studies show that spending plenty of time outside and less time on screens or near work help reduce myopia progression. Time outdoors seems to have a protective effect on myopia development. Even as little as 40-80 minutes outdoors has been proven to significantly prevent children from becoming myopic from school-based studies.
- If you are a parent and are short sighted it is important to make sure your children get regular sight tests at intervals suggested by your optometrist. Be sure to book them in by calling into your closest store or giving us a phone call.
- Myopic children are given glasses to correct their vision and help them see distant objects clearly. Additionally, there are different options we can employ to manage myopia and reduce its progression such as special myopia control lenses for glasses or contact lenses. We have access to Stellest lenses by Essilor, these lenses not only correct short-sightedness but they are proven to slow down myopia progression by 67% compared to standard lenses. One of our optometrists can advise you on the best option for your child.
If you have a concern or would like to arrange an appointment at Kingsbridge Opticians, please phone 028 9066 7030 or fill out our Online Enquiry Form.
