Prevent Blindness & Restore Sight
Blindness & visual impairment plague the world’s poorest due to malnutrition & poor health.
This impairment is highly preventable & treatable through low-cost surgery & medication.
Problem: Preventable Blindness & Vision Impairment
Nearly 1 billion people worldwide are living with preventable vision impairment – 90% of those affected live in the developing world. Visual impairment & blindness entrenches people in poverty & can be extremely harmful for those affected.
Problem
Blindness & vision impairment are often caused by combination of malnutrition, poor water quality, lack of sanitation & inadequate healthcare and health education. These forces conspire to spread diseases which damage vision & impedes access to treatment. Blindness can also be deadly. A high porportion of blind children die within a few years of losing sight, either from the underlying disease or due to the inability of their impoverished families to care for them.
Solution
Inexpensive Sight Restoring Surgery or Medication.
- Many cases of blindness and vision impairment are easily treatable & prevented.
- Provide sight-saving surgeries.
- Supply glasses.
- Provide clinical & health training.
Cost
A 10-minute cataract surgery costs as little as $50 per person in developing countries. Similarly, manufacturing & distributing quality intraocular lenses cost only $5 per pair (compared to $100–150 typical US market price).
Charities
Problem
Children aged 6-months to 5-years in many areas of extreme poverty are at high-risk for Vitamin A deficiency (VAD). An estimated 100,000 children die each year from VAD-related causes. This deficiency causes stunting, anemia, dry eyes (the leading cause of preventable childhood blindness) & susceptibility to infection and death. Vitamin A deficiency is due to diets that include few animal sources & little fortified food.
Solution
Vitamin A Supplementation.
- Oral vitamin A supplementation is the most widely practiced & proven approaches to control deficiency in high risk countries & areas.
- One of the most effective interventions is periodic prophylactic vitamin A supplementation to pre-school children of age 6-months to 5-years.
Cost
Vitamin A supplementation is inexpensive – generally estimated to cost around $2.46 per child per year.
Charities
Problem: Vitamin A Deficiency
Vitamin A is an essential nutrient that supports the immune, vision & reproductive systems. Trials conducted by GiveWell found that Vitamin A supplementation delivered in locations with high child mortality rates is one of the most effective ways to save & improve a child’s life.
