Control myopia before it's too late!

Studies predict that if current trends continue, almost 50% of the world’s population will be myopic by 2050 (close to 5 billion people). Of concern is the increased risk of permanent vision impairment for high myopes. 

What is Myopia?

Myopia is a common eye health condition where light is focused in front of the retina, resulting in blurred distance vision. People with myopia can often see quite clearly at close distance but distant objects will be blurred.

Myopia usually starts during childhood, typically progressing until the child stops growing.   Myopia is not just a vision condition. No level of myopia is safe and regular eye tests are critical to its management. 

As children today spend more time indoors at screens and reading, the risk of myopia continues to increase. If myopia is not managed correctly, regular changes to the optical prescription can continue and lead to issues later in life as well as the increased reliance on optical correction. Current research has multiple methods to control myopia. Hence, we recommend all children have their eyes tested often to ensure there are no changes. 

The risk of myopia in children increases when parents are myopic. 

The risk is nearly…

• 1 in 2 when both parents are myopic.
• 1 in 3 when one parent is myopic.
• 1 in 4 when neither parent is myopic.

What are my options?

Myopia can be controlled using many treatment methods in isolation or combination.

These options include customised spectacle lenses, contact lenses, eye drops and lifestyle changes.

Visit the website www.childmyopia.com to learn more about myopia.

Why don’t we just let kids suffer like some other optometrists? Letting them continue in their habits until they become lifelong customers, needing glasses every few months to a year. 

Evidence shows that an increase in myopia is linked to worse vision later in life. This puts a responsibility on us—parents, teachers, health professionals and optometrists—to ensure children have the best understanding of their bodies and vision for lifelong health.

Why Myopia Control Matters

Now imagine losing the primary and dominant sense you rely on: vision. If you lost your sight today—your central or peripheral vision—could you do your job? Maybe, but it would be incredibly frustrating. Myopia doesn’t cause immediate permanent blindness; the effects accumulate over time, manifesting in middle age and beyond. Without proper management, these children will face serious vision problems as they grow older. Thick glasses, expensive treatments, and lifelong frustration are not inevitable. They result from a failure to act when control options are available. 

Additionally, poor patient education and awareness of their condition leads to no real change in their lifestyle factors which are known to create progression of myopia. The best analogy can be a cancer patient being told they simply have to suffer through the disease and only pain can be managed. Despite treatments like chemotherapy, radiation therapy, anti-cancer medications, and other options exist with good evidence base.

Hence, to preserve our children's vision, it is critical to establish a good understanding of myopia and its management through all methods including lifestyle. Then make an informed decision about the best option for the child. Something different to simply being given a pair of glasses to improve the eyesight which is often what we see in our practice.