Eye tests should become part of your regular family health checkups. They’re needed at least once a year, especially when your kids are young. We all know the main aim of an eye test – it determines how good your eyesight is. This can be so important for children, and the tests themselves are also more significant that just checking your vision.
Hopefully, this post will show all the parents out there just how valuable regular eye tests are!
Detect other health problems
An eye test includes an examination of your child’s eyes. This lets the eye doctor detect any other health problems that might be lingering unhidden. This includes various eye diseases, as well as some forms of cancer. Clearly, spotting any issues as early as possible will be a huge advantage for you and your kids. You can prevent something from developing into a long-lasting health problem by taking action early on.
Prevent vision loss
Naturally, an eye test can help you prevent vision loss in your child. If they do suffer from bad eyesight, then you can get a prescription for lenses to put in kids glasses, allowing them to see better. This is clearly beneficial as they can see without issues, but it could also help prevent further vision loss – or at least delay it. If they carried on with no glasses, the problem would get worse.
Similarly, if they don’t need glasses, then you can receive advice on how to stop them from needing them. An eye doctor can see if a child’s eyes are getting worse. So, they can tell you of this before they get bad enough to need glasses. As such, you can take action by limiting screen time, avoiding bright lights, etc.
Avoid accidents
A child with bad eyesight is prone to so many accidents. They might be walking along in school and fall over something that they haven’t seen. This type of thing can happen all the time, putting their health at risk. With regular eye tests, you spot vision problems and act right away. Now, your child can see clearly and avoid lots of accidents.
Prevent headaches
Does your child always complain of a sore head or sore eyes? If they’re always at the nurse’s office in school, then they most likely have a problem. Bad eyesight can be a cause of headaches in young children. Therefore, regular checkups and tests can see if this is the case. If headaches are present, and the tests show vision problems, then correcting these problems can alleviate the pain. Likewise, as mentioned in the first point, your eye doctor may identify another cause of the headaches instead.
As I said in the introduction, I hope this shines a light on how important eye tests are for kids. They might seem trivial or a waste of time, but they’re not. They’re just as important as regular checkups with your GP and dentist. You only need one test per year, so it really doesn’t take up that much of your time!
BY TECHIE MAMMA