The initiative was aimed to inculcate an interest in children with activities that would decrease time spent on digital devices. Children more often use digital devices these days which makes them more prone to eye strain and can lead to myopia.
WORLD MYOPIA WEEK is observed annually between May 13 – 19, 2024. It provides an important platform for raising awareness about Myopia commonly known as near-sightedness. It’s an eye condition that affects millions around the world. This year’s theme is – Act Now – See Tomorrow As per studies, the prevalence of Myopia among Indian urban children is predicted to increase from 20% in 2020 to about 48% by 2050. It is the most common eye condition in children and young adults leading to blurred vision for distance viewing. If not corrected, myopia can impact daily life, however, it can be effectively managed and cured with proper intervention. Dr. Rashmi Apte, Pediatric Ophthalmologist, and Milmet-Sunpharma organised a day-long event to engage children with interactive activities. They were provided with colouring books and sketch pens.
Nisha Solanki belongs to a large family of two brothers and four sisters (of whom 3 are married). Both her brothers and elder sister attend school. Nisha’s father is mentally challenged. The responsibility of earning is on the mother, who is a daily wage farm labourer and grandmother, who tends to her goats. Two earing members for a family of ten.
Blindness in children leads to deep impact on psychological, emotional, and socioeconomic growth to the family. A child with blindness is more likely to have delays in developmental milestones, to be more frequently hospitalized, and die during childhood than a sighted child. Such severe vision loss also adversely effects the educational activities, orientation, and mobility from the early stage of life resulting in lack of employment privilege. These differential characteristics between a sighted and non-sighted child is more obvious in developing countries. Moreover, the disability adjusted life years (DALY) loss in a blind child is far more than that of adults with blindness.