UAE, Aug. 18 -- Dr. Rizwana Hussaindeen, Program Director & Associate Professor of Optometry and Vision Sciences, Gulf Medical University, provides insights into protecting children's eyesight.

Walk into any classroom today and you will spot more glasses than a decade ago. Children's eyesight is under growing pressure, and the numbers tell the story. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, globally, myopia (near-sightedness) already affects around 30 per cent of people, and researchers project that by 2050 nearly half the world's population will be short-sighted.

Myopia usually begins in schoolage children and tends to worsen through the teenage years. Studies carried out in the UAE reflects this trend. Studies of schoolchil...