When to Start Pediatric Eye Exams

 

Healthy eyes and clear vision are just as important for children as they are for adults. In fact, some would argue that they are even more essential at a young age. During childhood, our little ones are growing and developing rapidly, both physically and mentally. Learning about the world around them, how to communicate and interact and keeping themselves safe to the best of their ability are all vital skills that must be learned. Vision plays an integral role in all of these.

 

Unfortunately, your child may not realize that their vision is impaired in any way. To them, blurriness or other symptoms could seem fairly normal since they are used to them, and simply don’t realize that their eyesight could actually be much improved. Often it isn’t until a child goes to school and has difficulties accessing their learning or making progress that visual problems may be suspected. This is due to children requiring certain visual skills so that they can learn as effectively as possible. These include:

 

  • Proper movement of their eyes

  • Focusing ability

  • Clear vision at all distances

  • Accurate and comfortable eye teaming ability

 

Unfortunately, all too often visual problems are misdiagnosed as learning difficulties such as hyperactivity, dyslexia, attention-deficit disorder and more. Regularly pediatric eye exams can help ensure that this doesn’t happen and that your child has the visual skills that they need in order to achieve their full potential.

 

When Should I Start Taking My Child for Pediatric Eye Exams?

 

As your child is too young to take responsibility for their own health and wellbeing, it is down to you as their parent to make sure that you are taking the necessary steps to make sure that their vision is clear and their eyes are as healthy as possible. One of the best ways to do this is by ensuring that they attend regular pediatric eye exams in line with the recommendations made to you by your eye doctor.

 

Your child’s eyes will be given basic checks several times during the first couple of years of their life. These will assess for the presence of abnormalities and ensure that their eyes are responding normally. Experts then recommend that your child’s first comprehensive pediatric eye exam should take place shortly before they start kindergarten. Assuming that there are no issues discovered, your eye doctor will then make a recommendation for how often they should be checked following this. In most instances, this will be every two years. However, if your child is found to have eye issues or a refractive error that means that they need to wear glasses to correct their vision, the frequency of these visits may be increased. It is important that you adhere to the advice provided by your eye doctor. If your child develops any symptoms relating to their vision between appointments, don’t hesitate to contact your eye doctor for advice and support.  

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