Recently in China, high-priced youth eyeglass lenses that claim to slow down the progression of myopia in growing children and provide more detailed correction have been selling at high prices.

A pair of these lenses costs 1,980 yuan, nearly 400,000 won, but parents have been readily opening their wallets.

However, it was revealed that these lenses, which supposedly slow down myopia progression, have minimal effectiveness and cost only about 30 yuan, or around 6,000 won, to produce.

According to reports by China Central Television (CCTV), these youth eyeglass lenses—which were advertised as applying advanced micro-structure technology at the Danyang wholesale market in Jiangsu Province—were being traded for 30 yuan, with prices and functions nearly identical to regular myopia lenses.

The manuals for the youth myopia correction lenses traded for 30 yuan at this location indicated a consumer retail price of 1,980 yuan, or approximately 400,000 won.

Through exaggerated advertising, sellers were making exorbitant profits of up to 66 times the cost. Furthermore, at the wholesale sites, so-called packaging switches were taking place, disguising the products as expensive imported lenses.

[Eyewitness/Eyeglass Wholesaler: "If you order 'Aishikong' (a Chinese-made youth lens), I have seen employees from other stores take those lenses and put them into Nikon packaging for imported products to carry away."]

It was also revealed that some wholesalers distributed non-standardized lenses, meaning products whose quality had not been verified.

Jiangsu Province's Danyang, which produces 400 million pairs of eyeglass lenses annually, is a densely concentrated area for major domestic eyeglass lens manufacturing plants and wholesalers in China.

The local municipal market supervision administration launched an investigation, confirmed some of the facts including false advertising and exorbitant markups, and is proceeding with penalties for distributors and further investigations.

(Reported by Han Sang-woo | Produced by Lee Se-young | Video by Kim Byung-jik | Footage provided by China CCTV | Produced by SBS Digital News)