A new study said that eye issues are popping up in more children after they spent more time in front of screens during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Journal of American Medical Association Ophthalmology found that rates of nearsightedness among young children were three times higher during the pandemic than in the last five years.

A new study said that jump in screen time appeared to cause an increase in eye issues.

“Due to COVID-19 in 2020, the school-aged children were confined to their homes from January to May, and online courses were offered,” researchers wrote. “For the screened population, their daily online course hours for grades 1 and 2 is 1 hour and the time for grades 3 to 6 is 2.5 hours. Children’s indoor activities and screen time therefore increased and their outdoor activities were decreased, often to none.”

Researchers looked at more than 120,000 children between 6 and 13 years old during the pandemic.

The biggest uptick in nearsighted cases was seen in those children between 6 and 8 years old.

With an increase in online learning and people increasing the use of computers and phones … the World Health Organization estimates that half of the world population may be nearsighted by 2050.