According to a 2016 Pew Research Center survey, 74 percent of American adults said, “The country should do whatever it takes to protect the environment.” In protecting the environment, we must preserve natural resources such as air, water, soil, minerals, plants and animals, and where possible, reverse their degradation. But that list doesn’t include our most important resource—our children.

The 2010 Census showed 24 percent of the U.S. population, or 74.2 million were children under the age of 18. That group represents our future, but a National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health 2016 report found that 9 percent of children under age 17 have myopia, 13 percent have hyperopia and between 15 and 28 percent have astigmatism. The report also noted that 20 percent of children enrolled in head start programs had some type of vision disorder, and 14 percent of fifth graders studied had inadequate or uncorrected vision conditions because their parents couldn’t afford it. Ten states don’t require even a vision screening for school age children, although most recommend it, and for those states that have a requirement, there is considerable variation in method. These statistics don’t indicate that enough is being done to protect such a valuable resource!

As children progress through their school years, so do many vision conditions, most notably myopia. Myopia begins most often when children enter school and then progresses through the teen years. When considering the entire U.S. population, the incidence of myopia rises from 9 percent of children only to more than 40 percent overall. This tells us that children’s vision is degrading during the time they are doing the most learning, and children’s learning is a resource for our future.

How do we preserve this resource? Remember that children have an amazing ability to adapt to change, and most don’t realize they have a vision problem. As ECPs, we need to make sure parents and teachers are aware of the indicators of vision problems. Prevent Blindness considers the following potential indicators: frequent eye rubbing, closing or covering one eye, tilting or thrusting the head forward, trouble with reading or close work or avoiding near tasks, holding objects close to the eyes, excessive blinking, or squinting or frowning. We can also raise our own awareness by learning more about children and myopia with our CE “Controlling Myopia in Children."

• Linda Conlin
[email protected]
2020mag.com/education