Is World Sight Day

Having vision is an indescribable feeling- ask a blind person to describe colours and their answer will be a revelation for us sighted folk. Colours are such a particularly visual delight, so we will wonder about it as well. As adults we are all forced to work on our screens and live out a miniature life of sorts. But how is it any different for children these days? With the pandemic bulldozing our routines and lives, attending school online was a great measure to maintain some semblance of normalcy at home. Now our kids are hooked to screens like us and we all wonder what we could have done to change that.

Why Is Celebrating World Sight Day Important?

Research shows that in India, about 48% of the urban population will be myopic or short sighted by the year 2050. This seems reason enough. Most of us fulfil one of many roles in our lives- as parents, teachers or as some sort of caregiver to kids in some capacity. We need to teach them that real life is more exciting rather than staring at a screen. Sure, distracting kids with their favourite cartoon so we adults can get done with work sounds like a great strategy for now, it can backfire on us later. Years later, we scratch our heads and wonder why they seem ‘addicted’ to their screens. Schools can also get annual eye check ups done properly, so that children can get help as soon as possible.

Theme For 2024

The theme for this year is ‘Love Your Eyes’. This means that we need to focus on staying away from screens and teach kids the same. Children may lose their vision due to other reasons too, like hereditary diseases or accidents or exposure to toxic chemicals. But if we teach them how to take care of their eyes properly, they will be better at asking for help when required.

Conclusion

Children are young and highly impressionable. They will do what we adults model. So, if we stay screen free and try to indulge in other activities, they may be tempted to emulate just that. This statistic seems shocking- most of us and our kids will need to wear glasses to see better. Habits are formed when young, and so teaching children to take good care of their eyes needs to start at a tender age.