Elementary-school students who engage in outdoor activities can substantially reduce their risk of developing myopia, Health Promotion Administration (HPA) Director-General Chiou Shu-ti (邱淑媞) said, citing a study.
Engaging in at least 11 hours of outdoor activity per week can help slow the progression of myopia by 55 percent in one year, while exposing the eyes to sunlight for at least 200 minutes per week can reduce the risk of students with good eyesight developing myopia by 49 percent, Chiou said.
The results were based on a year-long intervention study conducted between 2013 and last year on more than 1,000 students aged seven and eight in elementary schools nationwide.
The findings were consistent with studies done in Australia, Singapore and the US, which have shown that 10 to 14 hours of outdoor activity per week could prevent nearsightedness.
Chiou said outdoor activity can mitigate the onset or progression of myopia because exposure to bright light releases chemicals such as dopamine that reduce eye strain.
It is necessary to find a way to tackle the occurrence of myopia in Taiwanese elementary-school students, because the prevalence of the condition increases from 7.1 percent for kindergarteners to 17.9 percent among first graders and 62 percent among sixth graders, according to an HPA survey conducted in 2010.
Chiou urged parents to pay attention to six measures to help their children maintain good eyesight and keep their eyes healthy.
The measures include having their children play outside two to three hours per day; not letting toddlers under two years look at TV screens and limiting screen time for children two and above to less than one hour per day.
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