1 in 4 Japan primary school kids with hay fever’s itchy eyes have trouble studying

TOKYO — Roughly a quarter of Japan’s elementary school children who have itchy eyes during hay fever season have trouble studying, a problem many parents are completely unaware of, a survey by a pharmaceutical company has revealed.

Rohto Pharmaceutical Co. has released the results of the survey conducted online on Jan. 24 and 25, targeting 7,131 parents of children aged between 0 and 16.

Some 42.6% of respondents said either their children had been diagnosed with a pollen allergy or they thought their children had one, an increase of nearly 10 percentage points from the 32.7% who said their children were allergic to pollen in a December 2014 survey.

The average age of onset was 5.8 years old. The most common measure taken to alleviate symptoms was “wearing a mask” (60.9%), followed by “use of hospital-prescribed medication” (55.4%). While “itchy eyes” was the second most common symptom felt by elementary school children, less than 30% of parents surveyed had taken countermeasures such as using over-the-counter eye drops or glasses.

For children, who play outside and are often in the open going to and from school, itchy eyes have a significant impact on their daily lives. When Rohto Pharmaceutical asked parents to ask their elementary school children with itchy eyes about their condition, with multiple answers allowed, as much as 53.9% said that it affects their daily lives, with 25.6% saying that they cannot concentrate on their studies, including schoolwork. Another 23% complained that they cannot enjoy playing outside, and 11% said that they cannot sleep at night.

Regarding the impact of itchy eyes on their children’s lives, 44.2% of parents said that there were details that they had not been aware of until answering the survey, revealing that even though they live together, they have not grasped how much impact hay fever was having on their kids.

(Japanese original by Kazuki Sakuma, Business News Department)