The Importance of Regular Eye Exams
“Save Your Vision” month is held every March to increase awareness regarding good eye care. Similar to your annual wellness exam, annual eye exams are an important part of your eye health, regardless of your age! Early detection of vision issues are critical.
Ways to Save
National Today gives us 5 great ways to save our vision:
- Schedule Your Eye Exam: Visit your eye specialist and get eye examinations done. Follow the requirements for safeguarding your vision.
- Improve Your Diet: A poor diet leads to poor vision in the long run. Eat lots of fruits and vegetables, and make sure that your body doesn’t have any deficiencies.
- Avoid Squinting: Many of us squint as a reflex and it has become a habit. After getting your eyes checked, get the correct lenses for correcting your vision instead so you won’t have to squint when looking at objects.
- Practice the 20-20-20 Rule: When staring at a screen, after 20 minutes, look away toward an object 20 feet away for 20 seconds.
- Wear Sunglasses: Exposure to the sun causes irreversible damage to the eyes, so shield your eyes with sunglasses.
Digital Eye Strain
Purdue University talks about one eye issue that is seen more and more: digital eye strain. For example, those who work on computers tend to not only spend a lot of time on computers, as well as on tablets and smart phones for work reasons and in their free time.
The AOA offers five ways to help relieve digital eye strain:
- Follow the 20-20-20 rule. As mentioned above, take a 20-second break, every 20 minutes and view something 20 feet away.
- Keep a distance. The AOA recommends sitting a comfortable distance from the computer monitor where you can easily read all text with your head and torso in an upright posture and your back supported by your chair. Generally, the preferred viewing distance is between 20 and 28 inches from the eye to the front surface of the screen.
- View from a different angle. Ideally, the computer screen should be 15 to 20 degrees, or about 4 to 5 inches, below eye level as measured from the center of the screen.
- Decrease glare. While there is no way to completely minimize glare from light sources, consider using a glare filter. These filters decrease the amount of light reflected from the screen.
- Blink often. Minimize your chances of developing dry eyes when using a computer by making an effort to blink frequently.
Shreveport Eye Specialists is now selling Oasis Pro Tears. These specialty wetting drops are only sold through licensed medical providers and provide relief from dry eye. Digital eye strain is a major culprit in dry eye. Contact us today to find out more.
By taking these steps as well as scheduling your regular eye health exams, you can “Save Your Vision”.
With over 18 years of medical experience, Dr. Russ Van Norman is an expert practitioner in treating a variety of eye conditions. Give us a call to schedule your consultation today so you can get on your way to the best year ever!
