Eye Care Awareness Month is observed from 19 September to 16 October, and Optometrist Leon de Vos sheds some light on why routine eye exams are important.
Routine eye exams are important – regardless of your age or your physical health.
During a comprehensive eye exam, your eye doctor does much more than just determining your prescription for eyeglasses or contact lenses. He or she will also check your eyes for common eye diseases, assess how your eyes work together as a team and evaluate your eyes as an indicator of your overall health.
Also, eye doctors often are the first health care professionals to detect chronic systemic diseases such as high blood pressure and diabetes.
Eye examinations are an important part of health maintenance for everyone. Adults should have their eyes tested at least every two years to keep their prescriptions current and to check for early signs of eye disease.
Eye exams for children also are very important to insure normal vision development and confirm that children have the visual acuity and vision skills required for schoolwork and other activities.
Children don’t always know what ‘normal’ vision looks like, so they’re unlikely to complain of vision problems. However, because vision is so closely linked to the learning process, undetected learning-related vision problems can lead to trouble with schoolwork.
Written by Leon de Vos, 031 – 573 2198/39, work@leondevos.co.za, www.leondevosoptometrist.co.za.