Kid-walking service brings focus to a 'Blurry Generation' of nearsighted children
Nearsightedness in kids is skyrocketing. In a cheeky stunt that initially had some parents and pundits outraged, Spanish eyewear giant Multiópticas launched a 'kid walking' service: Paseadores de Niños. The business purportedly employed people to take children outside for walks, highlighting the alarming reality that many kids today spend less time outdoors than household pets.
The concept was soon revealed to be an awareness campaign about the growing childhood myopia crisis. Hoping to slow down the growth of a Generación Borrosa, or Blurry Generation, Multiópticas wants to educate families on the importance of adequate sunlight and outdoor activity for preserving healthy eyesight.
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If current trends continue, myopia will affect over half the global population by 2050. Although it can be managed by wearing glasses or contacts, nearsightedness comes with a heightened risk of developing severe visual impairments like cataracts, glaucoma and macular degeneration.
So, are screens to blame? Partially. And genetic factors play a role, too. But studies indicate that the problem is as much due to inside time as screen time. More minutes spent outside equals less childhood myopia, and outdoor activity also reduces the disorder's progression.
With its playfully shocking suggestion that kids could be walked like dogs, Multiópticas underscores the need for unconventional thinking to kickstart behavioral change. Which unorthodox approach could your brand take to help bring the Blurry Generation back into balance?
