How Healthy Are Your Child’s Eyes?

“You need glasses,” the ophthalmologist said to me. I was 12 years old. My mom was shocked since I never complained of unclear vision, and no one else in our family had poor eyesight. The reason I went to the doctor was that I failed the school eye-screening exam. I didn’t realize my vision wasn’t normal.

I thought it was normal to see the world a little bit blurry.

Eye Health: Statistics

According to the CDC, 6.8% of children younger than 18 years in the United States have a diagnosed eye and vision condition. They also state that Amblyopia, or lazy eye, is the most common cause of vision loss in children, which can be treated if caught between the ages of 3 to 5 years old. The website Prevent Blindness found the most common vision disorders in children are myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), and astigmatism (blurry vision at all distances).

Linking Eye Health and Behavior/Development

The Urban Child Institute states that correcting poor vision can foster a child’s cognitive and social development. The American Optometric Association estimates 80% of a child’s learning happens through observation. In the classroom, most of the teaching is done by displaying the information. Children learn social skills from seeing facial expressions and body language.

Similar to my experience, children may be unaware of the fact their vision is not normal. This may lead to feeling frustrated about being unable to see the words in a book or on the board in the classroom, causing a child to act out.

The American Optometric Association states, “Some children with learning difficulties exhibit specific behaviors of hyperactivity and distractibility. These children are often labeled as having Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). However, undetected and untreated vision problems can elicit some of the very same signs and symptoms commonly attributed to ADHD. Due to these similarities, some children may be mislabeled as having ADHD when, in fact, they have an undetected vision problem.”

10 Signs Your Child May Have a Vision Problem

Pediatric Optometry lists the following as signs that may indicate your child could have a vision problem:

1. Head Tilt: If your child has a problem with their ocular muscles or nerves, they will attempt to compensate by tilting their head.
2. Sitting Too Close to The T.V.: If your child is nearsighted, they will attempt to compensate for this by moving closer to the T.V. or other reading materials.
3. Avoidance of Reading: If your child has poor visual skills, they will compensate for this by avoiding reading. Reading uses many complex eye movements, and poor visual skills may cause your child to become easily frustrated.
4. Frequent Headaches: Your child may have headaches because he/she is overstrained using all their energy to align, focus and use their eyes.
5. Laterality Problem: If your child has poor directional skills and often confuses left and right, it could be due to poor vision.
6. Finger Pointing: If your child has poor vision-tracking skills, they may use their finger to compensate for their poor tracking ability.
7. Can’t Copy from the Board: Your child may have difficulty with accommodation, the ability to change focus between far and near. This is essential for success in school.
8. Squinting: Your child may squint because this narrows a bundle of light entering the eye, which allows for sharper vision. Your child may be squinting because this act compensates for blurry vision.
9. Poor Hand/Eye Coordination: This skill is required for everything from writing notes in class to playing ball with friends. Clear vision and adequate visual skills are required to create an accurate link between vision and other body movements.
10. Eye Rubbing: This is a basic response to ocular discomfort. It typically occurs when eyes are strained or have been working much too hard to complete a task.

Two Types of Eye Doctors

If your child is experiencing one of these symptoms, then schedule an eye exam with an eye doctor. There are two different types of eye doctors: ophthalmologists and optometrists. An ophthalmologist went to medical school and a one-year internship followed by a three-year residency. These types of doctors can provide total eye-care services.

An optometrist did not attend medical school, but attended a four-year professional program and received a Doctor of Optometry degree. Optometrists mostly prescribe glasses and contact lenses.

Even though my mother didn’t think I would need glasses when I was twelve years old, she took me to see the eye doctor. I’m grateful she did.

Cheryl Maguire holds a Master of Counseling Psychology degree. She is married and is the mother of twins and a daughter. Her writing has been published in The New York Times, National Geographic, Washington Post, Parents Magazine, AARP, Healthline, Your Teen Magazine and many other publications. She is a professional member of ASJA. You can find her at Twitter @CherylMaguire05