EYE CARE FOR ALL AGES

Infant Vision:

Birth to 24 months

Babies learn to see over a period of time, much like they larn to walk and talk. They are not born with all the visual abilities they need in life. They ability to focus on their eyes, move them accurately and use them together as a team must be learned. Also, they need to learn how to use the visual information the eyes send to their brain in order to understand the world aroudn them and interact with it appropriately.

From Birth, babies begin to explore the wonders in the world with their eyes. Even before they learn to reach and grab with their hand or crawl and sit-up, their eyes are prividing information and stumulation important for their development.

Healthy eyes and good vision play a critucal role in ho infants and children learn to see. Eye and vision problems in infants can cause developmental delays. It is important to detect any problems early to ensure babies have the opportunity to develop the visual abilities they need to grow and learn.

Pre-school Vision:

2-5 Years of age:

Every experience a pre-schooler has is an opportunity for growth and development. They use their vision to guide other learning experiences. From ages 2 to 5, a child will be fine-tuning the visual abilities gained during infancy and developing new ones.

Stacking building blocks, rolling a ball back and forth, coloring, drawing, cutting or assembling lock-together toys all hlep improve important visual skill. Preschoolers depend on their vision to learn tasks that will prepare them for school. They are developing the visually-guided eye-hand-body coordination, fine motor skills and visual perceptual abilities necessary to learn to read and write. 

Preschoolers are eager to draw and look at pictures. Also, reading to young children is important to help them develop strong visualization skills as they "picture" the story in their minds.

This is also the time when parents need to be alert for the presence of vision problems like crossed eyes or lazy eye. These conditions often develop at this age. Crossed eyes or strabismus involved one or both eye turning inward or outward. Amblyopia, commonly known as lazy eye, is a lack of clear vision in one eye, which cant be fully corrected with glasses. Lazy eye often develops as a result of crossed eyes, but may occur without noticable signs.

The preschool years are a time for developing the visual abilities that a child will need to in school and through out his or her life. Steps taken during these years to help ensure vision is developing normally can provide a child with a good head start for school.

For more information, please visit www.aoa.com.

UV PROTECTION

Protecting your eyes from Solar Radiation

The sun supports all life on our planet, but it's life-giving rays also pose dangers.

The sun's primary danger is in the form of Ultraviolet (UV) radiation. UV radiation is a component of solar radiation, but it can also be given off by artificial sources like welding machines, tanning beds and lasers.

Most are aware of the harm UV radiation can do the skin, but many may not realize that exposure to UV radiation can harm the eyes or that other components of solar radiation can also affect vision.

If your eyes are exposed to excessive amounts of UV radiation over a short period of time, you are likely to experience an effect called photokeratitis.

Like a "sunburn to the eye", photokeratitis may be painful and include symptoms such as red eyes, a foreign body sensation or gritty feeling in the eyes, extreme sensitivity to light and excessive tearing. Fortunately, this is usually temporary and rarely causes permanent damage to the eyes.

Long term exposure to UV radiation, however, can be more serious. Scientific studies and research have shown that exposure to small amounts of UV radiation over a period of many years increases the chance of developing a cataract and may cause damage to the retina, a nerve-rich lining of the ey that is used for seeing.  Additionally, chronic exposure to shorter wavelength visible light, (ie: blue and violet light) may also be harmful to the retina.

The longer the eyes are exposed to solar radiation, the greater the risk of of developing later in life such conditions as cataracts or macular degeneration. Since it is not clear how much exposure to solar radiation will cause damage, the AOA recommends wearing high quality sunglasses that offer UV protection and wearing a hat or cap with a wide brim whenever you spend time outdoors.

To provide adequate protection for your eyes, sunglasses should

• block out 99 to 100% of both UV-A and UV-B radiation
• screen out 75-90 % of visible light
• be perfectly matched in color and free of distortion and imperfection; and
• have lenses that are gray for proper color recognition.

The lenses in sunglasses shoudl be made from polycarbonate or Trivex material if you participate in potentially eye hazardous work or sports. These lenses provide the most impact resistance.

If you spend alot of time outdoors in bright sunlight, wrap around frames can provide additional protection from harmful solar radiation.

Don't forget protection for children and teenagers. They typically spend more time in the sun than adults.

Be sure to see your doctor of optometry at least every year for a comprehensive eye exam.  It is a good way to monitor your eye health, maintain good vision and keep track of your solar radiation protection needs as well as new advances in eye protection.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding eye allergies or UV protection solutions, please feel free to contact our office at: (402) 332-0220.

You can also visit www.AOA.org for more information on these topics.