Source: Yangcheng Evening News 2013-03-16 A07G
Written by: Xia Yang, Liu Xiaoli, Wei Chunfu
Translated by: Chen Jiaying

"We once did a research in Liwan District, Guangzhou and found that the myopia rate of teenagers between the age of 15 and 18 is up to 75.6%!” Professor Yu Minbin, Party Secretary and Deputy Director of Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, said on March 15th. This was the data four years ago and the rate is going up every year. As for the food therapy for preventing and treating myopia circulating on the Internet, Yu Minbin said frankly that there was no scientific basis.

Doctor Zheng Yingfeng of Preventive Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, introduced that the myopia rate of the post-70s generation was only 20% -30%. However, the myopia rate of the post-80s generation surged to over 80%, and for teenagers between the age of 5 and 15 it reached up to 78%, which shows the tendency of lower age. “Many parents think that it is no big deal for their children to get nearsighted and they can just wear a pair of glasses,” Yu Minbin said, “This concept must be changed. If allowed to fester, myopia will bring inconvenience to your life, and high myopia may lead to all sorts of complications and seriously affect eye health!” Therefore, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center will hold a series of training classes on myopia prevention and control technology in cooperation with Guangzhou Primary & Middle School Health Care Office and the education bureau of every district. They hope to train 800 to 1,000 school doctors and popular science teachers in primary and secondary schools in Guangzhou within 3 years, and enable them to master juvenile myopia prevention and control technology and promote eye health care knowledge.

As for the food therapy for preventing and treating myopia circulating on the Internet, Yu Minbin said frankly that there was no scientific basis. “At present, no studies have confirmed what kind of food is beneficial for preventing and treating myopia. Just keep a balanced diet.”