The Surprising Cause Of Myopia In Children
Apparently, myopia could be caused by the lack of outdoor life.
According to studies carried out by Kings College London, more than half of children in Europe have myopia. The numbers increase for South Korean and Chinese children. Among them, the number of children with myopia exceeds 90%. In relation to the European population in general, it is estimated that a quarter suffer from this disease, with people between 25 and 29 years old being the most affected.
Experts have noticed an increase in myopia cases over the past sixty years. The numbers reveal impressive increases. About six decades ago, this disease affected approximately 20% of the population in the regions with the highest incidence. Currently, we can speak of an alarming 96% in South Korea, the most affected region so far.
How to find the cause of myopia in children?
As we have already shown, the number of cases of this disease has alarmed specialists. For this reason, different studies were carried out that revealed possible causes. According to experiments in the optical sector, genes may determine that children are predisposed to develop myopia. However, that doesn’t explain the latest explosion of cases. Therefore, studies turned to other possible causes.
To explain the fact that at least 25 million Spaniards may be currently suffering from myopia, we would have to speak of a genetic modification. But this explanation is not plausible in such a short space of time. Therefore, further research was dedicated to determining another probable cause for these new cases . Surprisingly, the discovery turned out to be a very common external factor for children living in cities: the lack of contact with outdoor environments. And, as a result, little or no exposure to sunlight.
According to the arguments of the Preventive Medicine and Public Health and Vision Sciences organization, more than 50% of the world’s population could be myopic within approximately 35 years. In this sense, according to the cause revealed, it is children who live in urban environments who are at greater risk.
sunlight vs artificial light
It is believed that the human eye was able to adapt to artificial light with great effort. For years, both daylight and nightlight were replaced by electric lighting. This time spent indoors has left us unable to regulate our vision during the process of daytime natural light turning into darkness at night.
According to studies, lack of exposure to natural light affected our visual health for many years. But only recently has this lack of contact with natural light increased. Our children have less and less contact with external environments and, consequently, they are no longer stimulated by the release of dopamine.
The lack of stimulation in the retina induces an excessive enlargement of the retina during childhood. At the end of this period, this enlargement causes myopia. The National University of Australia has determined that an artificially lit environment does not achieve the minimum luxes (unit that measures the intensity of illumination) needed to stimulate the retina. This minimum would be at least 10,000 luxes. In an artificially lit environment, only 500 luxes are reached.
Is it possible to prevent myopia?
Researchers have carried out studies to ensure that daylight needs are provided as a measure of protection and prevention of nearsightedness. Therefore, they suggest that children and adolescents should spend at least three hours a day outdoors. However, to prevent the disease, Taiwanese scientists are studying the possibility of establishing the minimum daily exposure to sunlight in 80 minutes.
The study showed a decrease in the number of myopia cases when 80 minutes daily sun exposure was established as a rule. In this sense, we could consider exposure to be an effective prevention mechanism. In addition to protecting children’s eyesight, it encourages the substitution of activities that could be harmful to eyesight, such as watching television or standing in front of the screens of other electronic devices for a long time.
