Why do so many young people need glasses now?

More and more children and teenagers need glasses at a young age. Why are these numbers going up, and what should you do to protect your eyes?

Words:

• When you have myopia, it means you are able to see things that are close, but not those that are further away.
• Ophthalmology is the name for the study of sight and eye health.
• An optometrist is an expert in sight and eye health.
• Your ethnicity is the group of people you belong to, often meaning your racial background, but also your cultural and religious background.
• When someone says the ‘close confines of a room‘, they are describing a closed space inside a house or building.
• The rate of myopia in a country is the number of cases that are being recorded there.
• When a development is caused or worsened by multiple things, these things are called the contributing factors.
• Something that is rare is something that doesn’t happen often.
• A treatment is something that will help to treat or cure a disease or condition.

Note: this video uses the phrase ‘short-sighted’. The phrase ‘near-sighted’ is also used to describe this condition. Both are correct.

Video:

Watch the whole video.

1.  According to the presenter, why do experts suggest that the Covid-19 lockdowns played a role in the increase in myopia amongst children?

2. Which of these statements are true?

A: The number of children in the African continent who have myopia are seven times higher than in Asia.

B: Spending at least two hours outside can reduce your risk of developing myopia.

C: Your ethnicity and genetics don’t play a role in your risk of developing myopia.

D: The number of cases of myopia in young children increased by a third worldwide.

E: Children in East Asia start school earlier, and spend less time outdoors than in the African continent.

3. Why is Denise Voon concerned about the increase of myopia in children, specifically? Name one reason.

4. Who is likely to get a condition called ‘retinal detachment’, which can cause blindness?

A: Young people with myopia.

B: People who have an extreme case of myopia.

C: People with myopia who aren’t diagnosed.

5. What can children (and their parents) do to prevent myopia? Name two pieces of advice the expert gives.

6. Screen time has shown to have negative health effects for you people. What could young people do to limit their screen time? Write down one practical tip.

Van de makers van All Right!, Of Course! en Taalblokken Engels