Look no further - the issue is right here

Do you have myopia? When asked this question,

75% of the people from our class answered “yes”.
In Singapore, the prevalence of myopia is among
the highest in the world, with 65% of children
being myopic by primary 6. In fact, of the 24
people we interviewed in our class, a staggering
94.4% of them said that their parents/siblings have
myopia.

Above: statistics of questionnaire

Why is this so?

Besides genetics, there are other factors that are increasingly contributing to myopia, such as
the use of electronic devices. We interviewed our class about their average daily screen time
and found out that around 61.6% of them look at their devices for more than 4 hours per day,
some of which excludes the amount of screentime looking at chromebooks.

Above: Photo of MGS students doing an assignment on their chromebooks

Every day, MGS secondary students use their chromebooks in school for at least an hour during
lessons. When they get home from school, they open up their chromebooks again to finish their
homework online. The many online projects and courseworks also make it a habit for them to
continuously stare at their chromebook, whether it be for research or collaborating with friends
online.

Furthermore, MGS students usually use the lesson materials on their chromebooks to study for
the weekly weighted assessments. This clearly exceeds the recommended daily limit of 2 hours
of screen time per day for children whose eyes are still growing and still developing.

Additionally, due to Singapore’s high pressure education system, students have no time to go
outdoors just to relax their eyes and take a break from their devices. When asked how many
times they did outdoor activities, 44.8% of the people with myopia cited that they only did it 2
times per week, and 28% said they did it at least 4 times per week. In contrast, those who do
not have myopia significantly spend more time outdoors, with a third of them doing outdoor
activities at least 4 times per week.
In conclusion, we feel that these reasons may be why many Singaporean children have myopia.
Other than genetics, increasing screen time and less time spent outdoors can also contribute to
the rising rate of myopia.

Word Count: 359 words

references:

our survey form

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1m_7IqJDKid0YjJjaNoID6DBhw3tSw7Dur0jCSdliDeg/edit#que
stion=1256966928&field=1064524626

how long should teens spend on their phones?

https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/screentime-teens.html

facts / statistics
https://www.moh.gov.sg/news-highlights/details/speech-by-dr-lam-pin-min-senior-minister-of-stat
e-for-health-at-the-opening-of-the-singapore-national-eye-centre-s-myopia-centre-16-august-20
19#:~:text=The%20prevalence%20of%20myopia%20in,Myopia%20Capital%20of%20the%20W
orld%E2%80%9D.