China to improve health conditions of primary, middle school students

China will launch a campaign to improve the health conditions of its primary and middle school students, the Ministry of Education said Friday.

More physical education classes will be arranged for the students, said Wang Dengfeng, an official with the ministry, at a press conference.

Wang added that other measures include relieving the study pressure on the students and helping them cultivate healthy habits.

Overweight and short-sightedness are increasingly prominent problems for Chinese students. About 53.6 percent of Chinese children and teenagers suffered from short-sightedness in 2018.

Wang noted that the prevention and control of short-sightedness are among the major targets of the campaign, adding that measures including improving lighting conditions for the students will be adopted.