Introduction
According to Dr Richard Nahas, eye exams may be as important as scheduled visits to the dentist. Annual eye exams don’t just check if your vision is blurry but benefit you in many other ways in both the short and long term. Let’s figure out why regular eye exams are important.
The Details
- Your child succeeds in school – Most of the school curriculum taught to children requires good vision. Several years ago, researchers found that good vision is necessary for kids to learn everything that is taught in and outside the classroom. However, that percentage may have gone higher now that kids get a lot more screen time than they used to.
That’s why regular eye exams are important. It lets you check if your child’s vision is deteriorating and take measures to correct it. Good vision helps your child succeed in academics as well as sports.
- Myopia is becoming more common – The number of children who are getting nearsightedness or myopia has been through the roof. More kids are developing this condition at an early age. This is very alarming since kids who become nearsighted early on, experience a worsening progression of myopia that persists throughout their childhood.
This puts kids at a higher risk of serious and potentially vision-threatening eye conditions later in their adult life. The possible conditions they may experience later on include retinal detachment, glaucoma and cataracts. Regular eye exams help to diagnose myopia early on and establish control measures to reduce the progression of nearsightedness and other associated risks.
- Glaucoma can be detected early on – Glaucoma is probably the sneakiest of all serious eye diseases. Most cases of early glaucoma don’t show any discernible symptoms and don’t alert you when something goes wrong. That’s why people who don’t get regular eye exams fail to detect glaucoma early on and that exposes them to a higher risk of permanent vision loss.
Make sure to get regular eye exams for both you and your family so that early detection of risk factors like high eye pressure can be identified so that you can get glaucoma surgery or glaucoma control medicine early on.
- Other health problems can be detected – Regular eye exams don’t just diagnose vision-related problems, but also other health issues. Your eyes aren’t just the windows to your soul, but your overall health as well. Routine comprehensive eye exams allow doctors to evaluate the health and condition of the blood vessels in your retina and predict the condition of the blood vessels throughout your body.
Regular eye exams can help diagnose conditions like hypertension, diabetes, hypercholesterolaemia and more. Moreover, doctors and scientists are researching ways to identify your risk for Alzheimer’s disease through a comprehensive eye exam.
Conclusion
Dr Richard Nahas suggests that you get regular eye exams to reap all the benefits. Regular eye exams can help your child succeed in school, prepare for and prevent myopia, detect glaucoma early on and even detect other health problems that are linked to your vision.
