EVERY parent wants to ensure their child reaches all their developmental and educational milestones.
But for a child to perform at their best, their eyes need to as well.
Children rely on their vision for 80 per cent of their learning. With this in mind, when did you last have your child’s eyes examined?
“In our comprehensive children’s eye test, we evaluate the acuity of your child’s vision for distance and near, the ability of the eyes to transition between distance and near viewing, and assess how well the eyes work together as a team,” Swan Hill Optical optometrist Jenalle Pye said.
“The internal and external health of the eyes are examined, and if required, we provide a tailored eyecare solution that considers the child’s lifestyle and visual needs.
“Our examinations are provided in a fun and relaxed environment. Our experienced local optometrists and dispensers enjoy working with the younger generation of our community to ensure their learning through the visual sense is maximised.
“We have extensive experience in treating children, and have formed wonderful relationships with many families over the years.”
Ms Pye said children often assumed their vision was just like everyone else’s, which meant that vision problems could easily go undetected.
“In fact, one in five kids have an undetected vision problem that can interfere with their ability to learn and absorb information,” she said.
“We are also seeing an rise in the incidence of myopia (shortsightedness) with the increase in screen time.
“Traditionally, this type of visual compromise presented in the mid-teens, and often the child had a parent with the condition.
“However, increased screen time means we are seeing children as young as five attend who can not see detail beyond the length of the arms.
“This is due to the fact that their eyes are developing to see clearest at closer rather than longer working distances.
“The younger myopia starts, the higher the risk of developing complications in later life, including retinal detachment and complete loss of vision.”
Ms Pye said good vision was crucial for a child’s educational, physical and social development.
“Every parent wants to ensure their child sees every opportunity coming their way. But for a child to perform at their best, their eyes need to be working at their best as well,” she said.
“We recommend children have an eye test before starting school, or early during their first year so that any potential visual problems can be identified or flagged.”
Look out for the symptoms, which includeg frequent blinking or rubbing of eyes, red or watery eyes, losing concentration when reading or completing near tasks.
Other include writing, skipping lines or losing place when reading, not progressing at school as expected for age, an aversion to reading and writing, headaches, blurred vision for reading or distance, squinting and one eye turning in or out.
Chat to Swan Hill and Kerang Optical for more information. Book an appointment at www.swanhilloptical.com.au
