What parents need to know about their childs vision

Children’s vision care is essential to every child’s development. Most of what a child learns in school is presented visually, so making sure your son or daughter has good vision as it can make a big difference in their academic performance.

Taking your child to an optometrist for a routine eye exam  can result in detection of any nearsightedness, farsightedness and/or astigmatism your child has so that it can be promptly treated with eyeglasses or contact lenses. I have seen several children with vision problems that have never had a routine exam done before. Routine exams are also needed to make sure your child’s eyes are healthy and to rule out other potential problems including amblyopia, strabismus and other binocular vision problems that may interfere with your child’s vision development, academic performance and sports vision.

According to the American Optometric Association (AOA), infants should have their first comprehensive eye exam at 6 months of age. Children then should have additional eye exams at age 3, and just before they enter the first grade. For school-aged children, the AOA recommends an eye exam every two years if no vision correction is required. Children who need eyeglasses or contact lenses should be examined annually or as recommended by their optometrist.