FAMILY VISION CARE’s ROLE ON YOUR
CHILD’S MYOPIA MANAGEMENT
By HJArago, November 13, 2025, Lipa City,
Batangas
WHAT IS MYOPIA
Myopia, commonly known as
nearsightedness, is an eye condition where an individual sees near objects
clearly but appears blurred in distance. A healthy eye should see objects
clearly both upclose and further away.
PHILIPPINE DATA
According to Philstar Global, a Philippine news outfit’s article
on Health And Family,
Early Intervention Key to Managing Myopia or Nearsightedness in Children by
Dolly Dy-Zulueta
reports current global data have shown that over 22.9% of the world
population have myopia with 2.7% having high myopia. It is predicted to
increase to 49.8% and 9.8% of which is high myopia by 2050.
In the Philippines, where approximately 30% of the
population are children between the ages of six to 18 years old, an
estimated eight million Filipino children may suffer from myopia.
A Philippine Eye Research Institute study has shown that
Filipino children are most likely to be affected by visual impairment, which
doubles when they reach adolescence. As students massively transitioned to the
digital platform brought about by the pandemic, research has shown that
children who use screens for greater than three hours per day are almost four
times more likely to be myopic compared to those spending one hour on screens
per day.
Currently, 35% of the country’s children population already
has myopia. It is predicted that 50% of Filipinos will have varying levels of
nearsightedness in 2050 10% of which will have nigh myopia.
PACIFIC DATA
Locally here in the Pacific Region
and Asia, consistent with World Economic Forum’s report on Centre
for Health and Healthcare, their article Eye Health Is Crucial for Asia
Pacific’s Economic and Social Future on May 15, 2025 reports that:
- APAC shoulders a disproportionate
burden from vision loss, affecting people’s wellbeing,
independence and opportunities — and costing the region billions in lost
productivity each year.
- Yet, around 90% of vision impairment is preventable or treatable with
appropriate care.
- Collaborative, cross-sector solutions that connect
eye health to healthy-ageing strategies and chronic disease management can
deliver economic and societal benefits.
(Source: https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/05/the-role-of-vision-health-in-asia-pacific-s-economic-and-social-future/)
Achieving the World Health
Organization’s Vision
for Everyone by 2030 requires building on existing efforts and
working together to scale solutions that reach those most in need. This can
include:
- Prioritizing and integrating eye care into public
health strategies, including
non-communicable disease frameworks, healthy ageing policies and primary
care pathways.
- Encouraging early detection through coordinated
public education and expanded access.
- Investing in sustainable care models and innovative
treatments that reduce treatment burden and improve long-term outcomes.
- Using digital tools, including telemedicine and AI-based
screening, to close gaps in access, especially in lower-resource
settings.
This requires commitment from all
stakeholders — healthcare providers, policy-makers, industry and patient
advocates. By working collaboratively, these actions can help ensure people
receive the care they need, when and where they need it.
Making vision health a regional
priority
Vision loss is not inevitable, but
changing its trajectory in Asia Pacific will take more than awareness alone. It
calls for turning insights into action through sustained collaboration across
sectors and ensuring vision health is embedded within the region’s broader
health and development strategies.
Protecting sight is about
empowering people to live independently, fulfil their potential, care for loved
ones and stay connected to the world around them. When people can participate
more fully in society — including at home, in their communities and in the
workforce — the benefits ripple outward, strengthening families, communities
and economies. By acting together across sectors, we have the chance to turn
these insights into lasting impact for millions across Asia Pacific.
GLOBAL DATA
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) Globally, at
least 1
billion people have a near or distance vision impairment that could
have been prevented or has yet to be addressed. In the absence of timely
detection, reduced or absent eyesight can have long-term personal and economic
effects. Vision impairment affects people of all ages, with the majority being
over the age of 50. Young children with early onset severe vision impairment
can experience lower levels of educational achievement, and in adults it often
affects quality of life through lower productivity, decreased workforce
participation and high rates of depression.
Vision impairment and blindness
impact the life of people everywhere. In low- and middle-income settings the
burden of vision impairment can be even greater due to fewer opportunities to
access the most essential eye care services.
Cataracts and uncorrected
refractive errors are estimated to be the leading causes of vision impairment;
however, other causes for vision impairment cannot be ignored. Age-related
macular degeneration, glaucoma, long standing systemic conditions like diabetes
causing diabetic retinopathy, infectious diseases of the eye and trauma to the
eye are all equally important causes for vision impairment that need to be
addressed.
Based on WHO’s report on Blindness and Vision Impairment
published on 10 August 2023, 50% of the world’s population will be myopic
in 2050. Here are some key facts of the global visual health as of 2023 :
- Globally, at least 2.2 billion people have a near
or distance vision impairment. In at least 1 billion of these, vision
impairment could have been prevented or is yet to be addressed.
- The leading causes of vision impairment and
blindness at a global level are refractive errors and cataracts.
- It is estimated that globally only 36% of people
with a distance vision impairment due to refractive error and only 17% of
people with vision impairment due to cataract have received access to an
appropriate intervention.
- Vision impairment poses an enormous global
financial burden, with the annual global cost of productivity estimated to
be US$ 411 billion.
- Vision loss can affect people of all ages;
however, most people with vision impairment and blindness are over the age
of 50 years.
NEARSIGHTEDNESS IMPACT TO DAILY LIFE
- School
and Learning
For young students and older learners, poor vision makes reading
difficult especially in school that requires blackboards, bulletin boards and
other distance activities such as sports and social events. This can affect
their school performance and self-esteem.
- Work
and Social Productivity
Adults with undetected myopia may find it difficult to
perform tasks that require distance vision—such as presenting on meetings, sports,
church, concerts and driving. This greatly reduces efficiency and safety and
may affect job promotions and improvement of his family’s economic status.
- Mental
and Emotional Well-Being
Frustration because of myopia affects both children and
adults. This will leave them left behind and anxious especially when they do
not know what is wrong with their vision.
PREVENTION AND CHANGES IN THE FILIPINO LIFESTYLE
Some changes in lifestyle may reduce myopia and its severity.
- Encourage
Children to Play Outdoors
Let them play outside. Allow them
to run and jump for at least two hours a day under the sun. Ideally, every
morning and afternoon. The longer the hours at play outside, the better. Studies
have shown that children who play at least 2 hours each day outside have lower
myopia rates. The Filipino family tend to be overly protective of their
children. Filipino parents would rather have their children inside the house or
at the garage. This maybe detrimental to the child’s developing eyes and brain.
At this age, children need to develop their near, intermediate, distance, depth,
color, center, peripheral and dynamic vision. This does not include their need
for psycho-social as well as emotional and physical development. Playing
outside should also meet these needs.
- Limit
Screen Time
Sadly, many Filipino parents have their children nannied by their tablets and cellphones for hours on end perhaps due to their busy schedules.
Statistics point to numerous visual, behavioral,
social, physical and emotional effects on children because of this. Although it
is true that digital devices are here to stay, setting up boundaries on their
device use is a good start in controling the increase of myopia on children. Eye
health professionals suggest maximum of two hours each day for their device use.
This must be enforced by the parents consistently.
For the adults, apply the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes,
look at something 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds.
- Proper
Lighting and Ergonomics
Avoid reading in dim lighting, bad posture, bad
air-conditioning positioning and lighting locations.
- Regular
Eye Checkups
Make sure that children and adults get their eyes examined
at least once a year, even if no symptoms are present and even if their errors
of refraction have been corrected. Have your eyes regularly checked by either
an optometrist and an ophthalmologist.
5.
5. On-line
Purchase of Prescription Eyeglasses, Questionable Contact lenses and Eyedrops
Many Filipino parent,
to save on their daily costs, resort to online purchases of unproven online
health products and self-diagnosing. This should not be. Many doctors are
reporting of complications of eye diseases and vision problems because of this.
We suggest that the parent schedule their child’s doctor’s appointment and have
their prescriptions from an eye doctor because only the eye doctor is duly
authorized to diagnose and prescribe.
Myopia Correction for Better Vision
Myopia is not merely not just a blurring of vision at
distance. It is now a public health concern in the Philippines that needs to be
addressed in the home and at school. If unchecked, myopia will affect learning,
and work. It will affect your daily life and your self esteem.
Thankfully, Family Vision Care has a variety of options that
will correct Myopia from Zeiss lenses to Myopia Control Lenses to contact
lenses, drops, Orthokeratology lenses and much more. We provide diagnostics, customized treatments
for each patient with care.
Your Family Vision Care is committed to helping the Filipino
family achieve better vision one family at a time.
Only you have the power to improve your family’s eye health.
Book for
your doctor’s appointment online at Family Vision Care Philippines at their Google,
Facebook, Instagram and Tiktok accounts at @familyvisioncareph or with WHOeyes and Zeiss Online Vision Screening Check.
Referrences:
https://www.philstar.com/lifestyle/health-and-family/2023/06/19/2272987/early-intervention-key-managing-myopia-or-nearsightedness-children
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/blindness-and-visual-impairment
GBD 2019 Blindness and Vision Impairment Collaborators; Vision Loss Expert
Group of the Global Burden of Disease Study. Causes of blindness and vision
impairment in 2020 and trends over 30 years, and prevalence of avoidable
blindness in relation to VISION 2020: the Right to Sight: an analysis for the
Global Burden of Disease Study. Lancet Glob Health. 2021 Feb;9(2):e144-e160.
doi: 10.1016/S2214-109X(20)30489-7.
