article_snippet.sent: Near-sightedness, or myopia, means nearby objects appear clearly, but those farther away look blurry.
article_snippet.sent: But researchers say reducing risk of myopia is easy, free and readily-available: Get some sunlight.
article_snippet.sent: Many have long believed that reading, studying or staring at your phone caused short-sightedness.
article_snippet.sent: There have been some attempts to protect children's eyesight.
article_snippet.sent: Myopia may seem like a minor inconvenience.
article_snippet.sent: People have to deal with glasses, contact lenses and even laser eye surgery.
article_snippet.sent: But researchers say there are serious implications of such high rates of myopia among young people.
article_snippet.sent: By the time these young adults hit these young adults 60s, many of these young adults vision problems are likely to get worse.
article_snippet.sent: these young adults grow older and the epidemic is then in older adults," said Saw, head of the myopia unit at the Singapore Eye Research Institute.
article_snippet.sent: As people age, people can become at higher risk for severe eye disorders such as high myopia, glaucoma (optic nerve damage), cataracts (clouding of the lens) and retinal detachment.
article_snippet.sent: These conditions could lead to vision loss and blindness.
article_snippet.sent: Fewer children in this unusual  elementary school in Guangdong province became nearsighted compared with those from another school that didn't follow such a policy.
article_snippet.sent: Researchers hope with greater understanding of this condition, far-sighted policies could save the next generation of children's eyesight.
highlights_snippet.sent: Evidence that myopia rates are increasing in Europe and the U.S.
  Scientists advice for kids: Go outside and play .