Early eye exams can save your child’s sight
Over 60% of children struggling with vision issues worldwide could avoid long-term damage with timely intervention.
There tends to be a perception that eye problems bother the old and those who are stuck on their computer screens most of the day.
That is far from the truth. Children can also suffer from problems with their eyesight.
A study done by the World Health Organisation shows that about 19-million children worldwide have vision problems. Of those, almost 12-million could have had their eye conditions corrected if they had regular eye examinations.
By the time a parent usually notices that their child has a visual problem, the child’s visual ability has often reduced by more than 60%.
Signs Your Child May Have Vision Problems
As a parent, you need to be concerned about your child’s eyesight if they:
- Regularly hold their head at an angle.
- Squint.
- Avoid light or fail to respond to light.
- Obsessively rub their eyes and grimace.
- Turn their eyes without focusing on anything.
- Grasp for objects and miss them.
Childhood Eye Conditions to Watch For
Strabismus (“Cross-Eyes”)
- When the eyes are turned or have different prescriptions.
- Can lead to lazy eye, where the stronger eye develops better vision while the weaker eye is neglected.
Amblyopia (“Lazy Eye”)
- Occurs when the eyes are turned or have different prescriptions.
- The brain “shuts off” the image from the blurry or turned eye, leading to poor vision development.
Far-Sightedness (Hyperopia)
- Difficulty focusing on nearby objects.
- Can cause headaches, red eyes, lack of concentration and restlessness.
- May improve as the child gets older.
Near-Sightedness (Myopia)
- Struggles to see far objects clearly.
- Squinting is common when trying to focus on distant objects.
Astigmatism
- Irregular curvature of the cornea.
- Can cause blurry, distorted and slanted vision.
Conjunctivitis (Pink Eye)
- Inflammation of the eye’s outer surface and eyelids’ inner lining.
- Caused by bacterial infection or an allergic reaction.
- Symptoms include redness, irritation, itchiness and discharge.
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