April 4, 2024 — New research has shown that reading glasses improve livelihoods and quality of life while also reducing poverty.

A randomized controlled trial carried out across rural Bangladesh, the THRIVE (Tradespeople and Handworkers Rural Initiative for a Vision-enhanced Economy) study found that a pair of reading glasses increased the earnings of people in low-income communities by 33%.

Here are some key takeaways from the study:

• Monthly median incomes for individuals who received reading glasses increased from $35.40 to $47.10 within eight months, or 33.4%. The control group showed no increase.
• Increases in income were higher among those who were not working at the start of the study, indicating that reading glasses helped unemployed people return to work.
• Only 35% of participants were literate, evidence that reading glasses are not just for reading but also for household tasks like sewing, weaving, preparing food, and storing grain.
• Wearers experienced a 16% improvement on a near-vision quality of life index that measures factors such as people’s sense of independence and ease of completing daily tasks.
• The study uncovered a significant need for near glasses, as half of participants ages 35-65 were identified to have presbyopia.

The THRIVE trial involved 824 people from 15 districts in Bangladesh with a focus on communities significantly engaged in farming and artisan crafts, including participants such as teachers, tailors, shopkeepers, and mechanics. Participants were 47 years old and 48% female, and the control group comprised 401 community members.

The study builds upon VisionSpring’s PROSPER trial, a randomized controlled trial that explored the link between clear vision and productivity.

“The THRIVE study reveals that the simple intervention of reading glasses yields outsized impact in terms of income. We encourage governments, philanthropists, development agencies, and the private sector to invest in vision correction as livelihood interventions,” says Ella Gudwin, the CEO of VisionSpring. “This evidence-based investment will boost individuals’ earnings as well as generate increased economic output and productivity that is good for communities and the wider economy.”

According to VisionSpring, more than a billion people worldwide do not have the vision correction they need to see clearly, with presbyopia as the leading cause. Further, more than 826 million people have difficulty performing routine tasks, thus maximizing their income-earning potential, without simple reading glasses.

Beyond measuring the impact of reading glasses on worker income, the THRIVE study highlighted opportunities to increase access to vision care by training nonmedical personnel to conduct basic sight tests and dispense ready-made reading glasses. The trial supports the efficacy of this approach, as all screenings performed for the study were conducted by community health workers as opposed to optometrists.

“The findings of the THRIVE study demonstrate the power of reading glasses in helping reduce poverty. For the cost of only a few dollars a pair, reading glasses have a significant and sustained impact on an individual’s earnings and help others get back into work,” says Nathan Congdon, M.D., MPH, Ulverscroft chair of global eye health at Queen’s University Belfast. “Where people are vulnerable to poverty, we can have an immediate and dramatic impact on livelihoods through this extremely simple and cost-effective intervention.”