Research shows that in 20 12, among the total population over 5 years old in China, the number of people suffering from myopia and hyperopia is about 500 million, of which the total number of people suffering from myopia is about 450 million and the total number of people suffering from high myopia is as high as 30 million. The prevalence rate of myopia among high school students and college students is above 70%, and it is increasing year by year. The prevalence of myopia among adolescents has ranked first in the world.
The socio-economic cost of visual impairment is as high as 560 billion yuan.
If conservatively estimated, the social and economic costs caused by various visual defects in 20 12 years will be as high as 560 billion yuan, accounting for about 1. 1% of GDP. Including the loss of quality of life caused by visual health, the proportion of GDP will reach 2.93%.
According to the prediction of the research group, if there is no effective policy intervention, by 2020, the prevalence rate of myopia among the population over 5 years old in China will increase to about 5 1%, and the number of patients will reach 700 million. By then, in aerospace, precision manufacturing, military industry and other industries, the labor force meeting the vision requirements may face a huge gap, which will directly threaten China's sustainable economic and social development and national security.
According to the conservative estimation of the bottom line, in 2020, if China becomes a country, it will become the third most populous country in the world, with a population twice that of the United States, which ranks fourth.
Li Ling, director of Peking University Health Development Research Center, said that the national visual health problem has become a major public health problem in China. At the national level, we should pay close attention to visual health and formulate public policies systematically to prevent crises.