An ophthalmologist explained to Novgorod residents why children from villages have better vision than city children

The conference "Pediatric Spring" was held in Veliky Novgorod at the Valdai Scientific and Technical Center as part of the "City-University" project. More than 250 doctors from different cities of Russia took part in it. The program included reports on innovative methods of treating children, the use of ultrasound navigation in the work of an anesthesiologist-resuscitator, and issues of intrauterine infections. Ophthalmologist, associate professor of the ophthalmology department of the North-West State Medical University named after Mechnikov Kristina Shefer spoke about myopia.

Myopia can be congenital or acquired. The congenital form is more dangerous because the child does not notice vision problems from birth and gets used to the pathology. Parents often learn about the disorders during a doctor's appointment. The ophthalmologist's task is to detect the disease in time. If myopia is not treated, it can lead to serious complications, such as glaucoma, which increases intraocular pressure, can cause significant vision loss or even blindness.

The eyeballs develop until the age of 11, and during this period the eyes are especially sensitive to external factors. Long hours of work at a computer monitor or reading books, especially at close range, can cause myopia.

The speaker talked about the importance of walks in the fresh air - the more often children walk, the lower their risk of developing myopia. This is due to vitamin D3, which helps the eyeball to form correctly. The vitamin is produced under the influence of the sun and affects the structure of collagen in the eye, making the eyeball stronger and more resistant to stretching. For walks, it is better to choose large open spaces where you can look at objects far away and close. During such walks, the eyes rest.

"This fact explains why children from rural areas suffer from myopia less often than city children. Also, students from private schools, where more time is spent on studying and static work of the eyes, suffer from myopia more often than students from state institutions," said Christina Schaefer.

Photo by NovSU