When Should My Child Start Myopia Management?
Children with nearsightedness, between the ages of 6-18 is the optimal time to begin myopia management. If your child has been diagnosed with myopia, or their myopia is getting worse each year, our specialits will provide your child with a myopia management plan.
What Can Cause Myopia to Increase?
Though exact causes are still unknown, data collected suggests evidence that the following points, among others can lead to myopia (nearsidedness).
- Heredity. Parents with high prescriptions often have children with high prescriptions.
- Children who study a lot, do a lot of near work or view things closely to their face.
- Excessive use of electronic devices at close proximity, such as tvs, phones, tablets, and others.
- Lack of outdoor playtime.
- Unhealthy or weak diet.
How Can I Prevent My Child’s Vision From Getting Worse?
Majority of prevention of myopia involves lifestyle changes, such as:
- Reduce electronic device use time
- Take frequent breaks while studying or any other close proximity activities
- Increase outdoor playtime
- Promote a healthier diet
What Does “Nearsighted” Mean?
Nearsighted means that you are literally “near-sighted”. Meaning you can see nearby objects clearly, but distant objects look blurry. The medical term for nearsightedness is myopia.
Is Nearsighted Genetic?
Though there isn’t direct proof of the correlation of nearsightedness and genetics, however substantial data has shown that children with parents who are nearsighted or have higher prescriptions end up with myopia.
Can Being Nearsighted Cause Headaches?
Eyes that are nearsighted causes the light to focus short of the retina. This causes blurry distance vision. This does cause headaches are due to the eyestrain created by the blurred vision and the squinting a nearsighted child typically does to attempt to see more clearly.
Nearsighted Vs. Farsighted Vision
The medical term for nearsightedness is myopia. Farsightedness — known as hyperopia — is the opposite of nearsightedness. Farsighted vision is usually caused by an eyeball that’s too short, causing light to focus behind the retina. Farsightedness makes close objects look blurry, but they are able to see far. However, high levels of hyperopia can cause objects at all distances to appear out of focus.
Progressive Myopia & Blindness
Progressive myopia is nearsightedness that worsens very single eye exam. If myopia progresses enough, it can result in high myopia, a severe degree of nearsightedness that increases the risk of developing several serious eye conditions. One step further, degenerative myopia, can lead to serious, vision-threatening complications, including blindness. However, this is rare. Progressive myopia is a growing problem. In 2015, the World Health Organization estimated that 2.8% of the population suffered from high myopia. By 2050, they believe that figure will rise to 10% — nearly quadrupling in only 35 years.