Coronavirus prevention measures may have sabotaged China’s fight against nearsightedness

A study of almost 2.5 million children found the growth rate of myopia almost tripled during the Covid-19 pandemic

Officials said Covid-19 lockdowns forced children indoors, which could explain the increase

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The rate of myopia spiked in China in 2020 as children were forced to spend more time inside due to pandemic prevention measures. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 9:00pm, 19 Jul 2021Updated: 9:22am, 20 Jul 2021

China has a remarkably high rate of myopia, or nearsightedness, and Covid-19 pandemic measures, such as children spending more time inside or taking classes via digital screens, may have accelerated the problem.

Mainland officials have drawn a direct connection between rising rates of myopia and the Covid-19 pandemic prevention measures that have come to define the previous 18 months.

“In the first half of 2020, the home-wide anti-epidemic reduced the time for outdoor activities and time for relaxing eyes, which brought challenges to the prevention and control of myopia,” said Zenawdu Hasayn, an NHC official, during a press conference last week.

The rate of myopia among minors in China gets more prevalent as children age. Photo: Handout

Officials from China’s National Health Commission (NHC) said that the rate of myopia rose by 2.5 per cent in 2020 compared to the year before. Previously the rate of nearsightedness grew 0.9 per cent between 2018 and 2019.

The NHC surveyed 8,604 schools, comprising of 2.477 million students across the country, for the study.

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