The Myopia Epidemic: Why It's Spreading and What Works

The Rise of a Modern Epidemic

Myopia—short-sightedness—barely featured in medical literature until the 1950s. Today, it's one of the most common vision disorders on the planet. And the trend is accelerating: in just one generation, the number of short-sighted young people has doubled. By 2020, myopia affected roughly 2.2 billion people globally—about one in three of us.

Something has changed. And it's worth understanding what.

A Simple Experiment

Lift your eyes from this screen for a moment. Look as far as you can in every direction—toward the horizon, to the edges of your visual field.

What do you see?

If you're lucky, you might spot distant trees, rolling hills, or the clean line where earth meets sky. But honestly? Most of us don't get that view anymore. In most directions, a human-made structure blocks the distance—a building, a wall, a street. Or you're indoors, and your line of sight stops at five metres.

We've never lived in cities quite like this. Everything we need sits within arm's reach or a half-hour commute. We spend our days in climate-controlled boxes: homes, cars, offices, shops, gyms. We don't seek views of nature anymore—we Google them. We don't scan horizons for threats; we stare at GPS on our phones.

Our eyes have nowhere far to look. And they're paying the price.

How Serious Is This?

Researchers increasingly believe that our narrowing visual field is a primary driver of the myopia epidemic.

In China, about 10–20% of people were short-sighted in 1950. Today, three of the world's largest cities crowd that same country, their skylines climbing higher, their infrastructure denser, more functional, more convenient. People's eyes adapt to seeing only nearby objects—there's no need, and often no chance, to focus far away. The result? Roughly 90% of Chinese teenagers and young adults now have myopia diagnoses. Many experience progressive myopia, with the real risk of significant vision loss in later life.

South Korea offers an even starker example. In Seoul, home to some of the world's largest corporations, 95% of 19-year-old men are short-sighted. For many, the condition is worsening.

Genes or Environment?

These numbers demolish the old theory that myopia is purely genetic. It's becoming clear that environment matters far more than we once thought. Not just what you inherit, but how you live: hours spent indoors, constant close-up screen work, tasks that never demand you to focus far away.

If that's true, then the question becomes: do we accept blurred distance vision as the cost of modern life? Or do we act?

The Good News

Short-sightedness is highly treatable. If you've been told you're not a candidate for traditional laser surgery, or if your prescription is complex, ICB lens replacement offers a permanent solution—we literally replace your natural lens with a precision-made artificial one.

For most people, Flow3 laser eye surgery is the answer. It's a flapless surface procedure—no cut, no flap, just precise laser reshaping of the cornea. The entire clinical team at KSA chose Flow3 for their own vision. That's not marketing speak; that's what they actually did. Recovery takes roughly a week, and you're back to sharp, stable vision.

We've performed over 55,000 procedures. Dr. Ants Haavel, who founded KSA Silmakeskus more than 20 years ago, has made this his life's work. The evidence is in the numbers—and in the trust of patients who simply want to see clearly again.

Myopia is spreading. But it doesn't have to be permanent.