Directions: Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow by choosing the correct/most appropriate options:

Millions of young children are growing up short-sighted every year because of myopia. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there were nearly two billion people with myopia in 2010 — a quarter of the human population. By 2030, they project myopia prevalence to reach 3.3 billion people. While East Asia and the Pacific have been reporting some of the highest numbers for a decade now, current estimates out of India do not yet reflect this trend. It may mean we have time to act and save the sight of our children.

Myopia is commonly found in children. As they grow and their bodies change, the length of the eyeball and its power to refract light do not always align, leading to vision that is blurry. A pair of spectacles is enough to correct this mismatch. However, spectacles address the symptom and not the cause (eyeball length), so myopia can progress all through childhood. Progressive myopia, after a point, leads to ‘high’ myopia, increasing the risk of retinal detachment, glaucoma, or macular degeneration that can cause permanent vision loss.

A host of environmental and genetic factors determine the onset of myopia. It is believed that exposure to sunlight and a healthy balance between distance- and near-work can arrest myopia onset and progression. Many children, especially in urban environments, are spending more time indoors and on near-work. Be it at school or at home, the quantum of near-work — looking at books, television, phones, or laptops — has increased over the decades. The COVID-19 pandemic has only accelerated this trend by robbing children of outdoor playtime and exposure to sunlight. This big shift to near-work seems to be triggering an increase in myopia prevalence.