Children - When Are Vision Exams Necessary?

Hello! My name is Austin, and I am an optician in the Cumming area for Dr. Mira Sivan at For Your Eyes Only. This will be my first in a series of posts regarding vision information I feel patients should know.

My day-to-day routine involves examining many patients and finding out if he/she may need glasses. In doing so, I get an idea of what many people in the area do and, more importantly, do not know about their vision.

This past week I examined a young child that was getting his first eye exam. In the preliminary testing, I deduced that this particular child had major vision issues that most likely needed correcting. Dr. Sivan continued by doing the comprehensive exam, and further testing showed that this child was also colorblind on top of needing major correction.  The parents of this child had no idea that either of these issues were present, the colorblindness being present since birth.

The point I am trying to get across here is that there is never a time where it is "too soon" to get an eye exam. If you notice your child struggling with reading, squinting when seeing far away, or holding a book too close - it may be a vision problem more than just learning how to read.

According to the U.S. Center for Health Statistics, 14 percent of children that are under the age of 6 have had their eyes examined for problems. American Optometric Association (AOA) recommends eye exams for children as they turn 3, and again when they are entering the first grade. These two statistics together worry me greatly, as I know the detrimental effects poor vision can have on anyone...ESPECIALLY children who are trying to learn and process everything.

So, my question to you parents - do you fall in the 86 percent of children who have yet to receive their eye exam by age 6?

Contact Information

Website: www.fyeo-eyecare.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FYEOEYECARE1

Phone Number: (678) 648-5185