[Lain]

I've noticed that a lot of Asian people, especially Japanese men, have glasses. Is this caused by genetics, or is it an enviromental-related thing?

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Name : Lain, Gender : M, Age : 23, City : Winnipeg, State : NA Country : Canada, Social class : Middle class, 

[Cynthia31739]

There have been studies done in Hong Kong about why children there have a greater tendency to wear glasses than those in mainland China. The answer was simple: school and studies are much more important and emphasized in Hong Kong than in mainland China. Some kids in China don't even get to go to school beyond the elementary level, if at all. Most kids in Hong Kong do go on to finish high school, and likely beyond that. Schoolwork and academic pressure is equally high, if not higher in Japan. Spending too much time with books, especially when you're reading under incorrect lighting, can cause eyesight to deteriorate.

User Detail :  

Name : Cynthia31739, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Disability : Contact Lens Wearer, Race : Asian, Age : 23, City : Toronto, Ontario, State : NA Country : Canada, Occupation : Graduate Student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

[Kristina26262]

It is true there are many Asians with glasses, but there are many non-Asians including myself that need them too. You are noticing Asians more because they look different than you, especially in terms of eye shape. If you were in an Asian country, I am certain you would notice plenty of Asians who didn't wear glasses. By the way, just because a person doesn't wear glasses doesn't mean they have perfect vision regardless of their race. Many choose to wear lenses, while others just go without anything, which often times makes their eyes worse. Anyway, eyes are eyes. There is no race that is any more prone to bad vision. From what I've seen it seems as if a large percentage of people period need glasses or some form of corrective eyewear.

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Name : Kristina26262, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Christian, Age : 21, City : DC, State : DC Country : United States, Occupation : Transcriber, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Sue]

I used to wear contacts all the time until I noticed that wearing a nice pair of glasses was a popular and trendy thing to do. Whether this is popular only within 'Asian-American' cultures, I don't know. I do know that my friends and I wear our glasses more than we used to because it's trendy and it looks cute.

User Detail :  

Name : Sue, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Asian, Religion : Catholic, Age : 22, City : Los Angeles, State : CA Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[tanya]

Wearing glasses in the US is slowing becoming a fashion trend; however, in Asian cultures wearing glasses has long been fashionable. Growing up wearing glasses in the US I was teased. But in Korea, where my mother is from, glasses are very common for everyone. In fact, I still buy my glasses frames from Korea because they have a larger selection and the latest styles. I don't think Asians have poorer eyesight than others per say but more people choose to wear glasses than contacts.

User Detail :  

Name : tanya, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Asian/white, Religion : Christian, Age : 21, City : colorado springs, State : CO Country : United States, Occupation : sales, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[jenny]

they just wear to look smart and all this stuff, but its all bs so just ignore it.

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Name : jenny, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Hispanic/Latino (may be any race), Religion : Atheist, Age : 16, City : unknown, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : full time student, Education level : Less than High School Diploma, Social class : Middle class, 

[Jason31263]

It's because their eyes are so squinty they can't see without glasses

User Detail :  

Name : Jason31263, City : Dayton, State : OH Country : United States, 

[JerryS]

I think something over 50% of the people in the USA were corrective eyewear, so I would guess that this is one part stereotype, one part fashion. It may well be that Asians are less likely to wear contact lenses for some reason.

User Detail :  

Name : JerryS, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Jewish, Age : 52, City : New Britain, State : CT Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

[Krista Yabe]

There was actually a program about this on TV in Japan a while ago. They compared people and their living environments. People who tend to live in huge wide open spaces had MUCH better eyesight than those who lived in small spaces. In other words, people who live in the country, with large open spaces that they look at every day had much better eyesight than people who lived in cities. Anyone who lives in a crowded city has a much higher chance of needing glasses than someone who lives in the country. It has nothing to do with race. I think the stereotype comes into play because more Asians tend to live in big cities without a lot of space than their counterparts of other races. Eyes are like muscles. If you are accustomed to only looking at things close to you, then your eyes will have a lot of trouble focusing on something in the distance. Reading and studying alone will not cause your eyesight to deteriorate. Not using your eyes for anything other than reading and studying will.

User Detail :  

Name : Krista Yabe, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 23, City : Nagoya, State : NA Country : Japan, Occupation : Housewife, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

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