London, UK (BBN) – Science has something to say about laziness and its connection to the economy, and even lack of sleep and its potential health risks.
Now, the community has a warning to those who don’t embrace nature, reports stgist.com.
The new research, according to an article published by The New York Times, revealed that exposure to sunlight, or having more activities under the sun, may reduce the risk for nearsightedness or what they call myopia.
The paper is published in the journal JAMA Ophthalmology with the title “Association Between Myopia, Ultraviolet B Radiation Exposure, Serum Vitamin D Concentrations, and Genetic Polymorphisms in Vitamin D Metabolic Pathways in a Multicountry European Study.”
Published online on December 1, the paper’s findings underline the importance of having outdoor activities especially now as humanity enjoys the so-called information technology boom, with most eyes glued to smartphones, tablet computers, laptops, and so on.
The researchers recruited over 370 men and women with myopia and about 2,800 individuals without it.
They’re 65 years and older, and of European descent. The group then gave the participants eye examinations, took blood samples and interviewed them about their behavior and health over the years.
The interviews were for the estimation of exposure to ultraviolet B rays.
The group has found that participants with the highest ultraviolet B exposure, especially during teenage and young adult years, had about a 30 percent lower risk for nearsightedness than those with the lowest exposure.
The report also reveals that exposure to sunlight increases vitamin D levels although vitamin D levels has no connection with myopia.
“Myopia is becoming increasingly common globally and is associated with potentially sight-threatening complications,” the group wrote in their study. “Spending time outdoors is protective, but the mechanism underlying this association is poorly understood.”
In addition, researchers found that participants with the highest blood levels of lutein, a nutrient found in egg yolk and green leafy plants, had a 43 percent reduced risk of myopia than those with lowest levels.
GENERATION WITH MORE TIME INDOORS
It is quite obvious that this generation has a problem. Teens and young adults nowadays spend more time indoors as they are greatly engaged with their computers and other similar devices.
According to a survey conducted in the United Kingdom (which we can safely use to represent the global youth), three-quarters of children spend less time outdoors than — read this — prison inmates.
It also revealed that a fifth of the children surveyed did not play outside at all on an average day.
But it may be unfair to just blame technology. According to Nature.org, most teens don’t spend more time outdoors because: 80 percent of those surveyed said “it was uncomfortable to be outdoors due to things like bugs and heat.”
Meanwhile, over 60 percent said they “did not have transportation to natural areas.” Also over 60 percent said “there were not natural areas near their homes.”
In other words, we can also blame the government as they don’t provide more parks and other infrastructure that promote nature and spending more time outdoors.
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