Sunday, September 30, 2018

Are our eyes getting worse? - The myopia pandemic

The video is a little sensationalist, but if nearsightedness progresses to the more advanced level of high myopia, complications like glaucoma, cataracts and retinal detachment may occur. 
https://www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/myopia-faq/can-myopia-lead-to-blindness.htm 

Myopia prevalence is increasing to pandemic proportions, perhaps because of how close we hold something we're reading, or perhaps because of the angle of our gaze when reading which makes the eye muscles stretch the eye's shape.

"The researchers found a tendency towards more myopic progression with a steeper downward angle of gaze when reading."
Reading too close is a "chicken or the egg" conundrum, because people may hold things close to read because of their developing myopia, or the converse.
"Higher myopia was associated with a shorter reading distance in girls at the last two of the three yearly follow-ups, but not at other visits. However, it seems logical that myopes might hold their reading material close, especially when not using spectacles, so it is difficult to conclude whether the association is causal."

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