Pulling Amanda away from her books is a constant challenge for her mother, Mrs Audrey Tan. The 10-year-old's shortsightedness, or myopia, has been rising speedily at 100 degrees a year, from 100 in kindergarten to 500 degrees now.
Amanda does not worry about the consequences, but Mrs Tan, 42, is fretting.
'If it continues increasing at this rate, her myopia will be very serious when she grows up,' says the housewife, who has myopia of 200 degrees. Her husband is also myopic, at 1,000 degrees.
Her efforts to get Amanda to rest her eyes are met with frustrated complaints by the girl.
Myopia is caused by the elongation of the eyeball. The eye's lens cannot focus the incoming light onto the eye's retina, resulting in a blurry image.
It is irreversible, advances most quickly in primary school children and tends to stabilise in the late teens.
While parents will be proud of a studious child, they should be aware of the downside to too much reading.
The recent Singapore Cohort Study of the Risk Factors for Myopia by the Singapore Eye Research Institute (Seri) revealed that children who read more than two books a week have a three times higher risk of developing myopia.
The study also found that myopia in children between the ages of seven and nine is increasing at the rate of about 80 degrees a year.
This means that some parents may need to send their children for screening more than once a year, says Associate Professor Donald Tan, Seri's director.
'Parents may need to regularly ask their child if they're seeing well. If myopia advances rapidly, their glasses quickly become ineffective.'
A good indication is whether the child can see the blackboard well at school, he says.
The study is also a sobering reminder about the state of myopia here, with some experts asking for a firmer stand from parents (see story, right).
'We may be overschooling our children,' says Dr Pauline Cheong, a consultant ophthalmologist at Gleneagles Medical Centre.
The trend of having children develop myopia younger and faster is worrying because they tend to develop more advanced myopia if they start young.
This makes them prone to glaucoma and retinal detachment at a later age - which could lead to blindness.
So far, only near-work activities (reading, writing, computer work) have shown a definite correlation to myopia as well as genetics (myopic parents tend to have myopic children).
Perhaps it's no surprise, with more computer games, SMS-ing and reading today.
Dr Cheong sees the proliferation of the addictive Game Boy hand-held video games as one such problem and will not buy one for her children.
'If we get one as a gift, we'll give it away,' she says. 'We also get into big fights over time spent on computer games. It's not easy, but parents need to take a stand.'
For more information on the National Myopia Prevention Programme and healthy eye habits, visit the Health Promotion Board at www.hpb.gov.sg
Take a break
By Radha Basu
CLAD in a T-shirt, bermudas and glasses, Don Lau looks like the average Singapore teen. Till you look closer.
His glasses are thick and sturdy, the kind usually worn by people of his grandparents' generation.
Small wonder since the Secondary 1 student is among a growing tribe of kids with myopia of over 600 degrees.
Don was diagnosed with 300 degrees myopia when he was six years old. He was a quiet child and did not let on that he couldn't see well, says his mother, Joyce Lim, 43.
'So we got quite a shock when told how high his power was,' says Ms Lim.
She has about 500 degrees myopia while her husband is not shortsighted.
Since K2, Don's eyesight has worsened at the rate of about 70 degrees a year to the current 800 degrees.
Don is unfazed. 'I manage quite well with my glasses,' he says.
Ms Lim, however, is worried. Don has all the habits that are a no-no for those with bad eyes.
He is glued to the computer screen for about three hours a day and often reads in dim light while lying in bed.
Begging her son to use the computer less has not worked. 'These days, kids don't listen,' she laments.
The Health Promotion Board says parents can - and should - be more assertive in ensuring that kids practise 'good eye-care habits'.
These include looking at faraway objects after every 30 minutes of reading or computer use.
Children should also ensure that they hold a book at least 30cm away when reading while the ideal computer distance is 50cm.
Dr Shyamala Thilagaratnam, who heads HPB's National Myopia Prevention Programme, agrees that growing myopia rates should be a concern with parents.
'Since myopia starts younger in kids here, it has more time to progress and develop into severe or 'high' myopia,' she says.
'Complications from high myopia could make a person blind, so we need to be careful.'