What Does It Mean To Be Nearsighted Or Farsighted?

Time to explore two of the most common refractive errors: myopia and hyperopia!

Normally, Light Is Focused Directly Onto The Retina

Before we delve into what it means to be nearsighted or farsighted, let’s first talk about how a normal eye functions. Vision occurs when light enters the eye and, working together, the cornea and the lens refract light to focus onto a point at the very back of the eye called the retina. The retina converts this light into electrical impulses and sends them to your brain. Your brain then produces an image.

When there are imperfections in the eye that prevent light from being focused perfectly on the retina, a refractive error occurs.

The Way The Eye Is Shaped Can Determine Vision

Myopia

Myopia, commonly known as nearsightedness, affects nearly 30 percent of the U.S. population. It occurs when light is focused in front of the retina, instead of directly on it. This happens when the cornea is too curved or the eyeball is too long.

People who are nearsighted have an easy time reading, working on the computer and doing other close work. They struggle seeing when driving, reading a whiteboard at school, watching a movie or trying to identify faces from far away.

Hyperopia

When an eyeball is too short or the cornea isn’t curved enough, farsightedness–or hyperopia–is the result. This causes light to be focused behind the retina, making a farsighted person able to see far away but not close up. Only around 10 percent of Americans have hyperopia, making it much less widespread than myopia.

Those who are farsighted can easily read an eye chart, but may have trouble reading the text book right in front of them. Consequently, farsightedness is often missed in simple vision screenings performed at school. For your next eye exam, visit one of our Doctors of Optometry and get your eyes checked by an eye care professional. We will not only ascertain your visual acuity but they will also assure that every aspect of your vision health is taken care of.

Everyone Deserves To Have Good Vision

If you have frequent headaches or eyestrain, you may have a problem with your vision. If you already have glasses or contacts and experience similar symptoms, you may just need your prescription updated. So whether you’re going in for some new frames, renewing your prescription, or suspect that something in your vision might be off, our Doctors of Optometry would love to see you. It’s our philosophy that everyone deserves to have good vision!

We love being the eye care professionals you trust!

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The Value Of Back-To-School Eye Exams

With school starting up again soon, now is a great time to start thinking about scheduling an eye appointment for your child.

Classroom Vision Problems Are Varied

Experts estimate that 10 percent of preschoolers have a vision problem significant enough to impact learning, and being nearsighted or farsighted aren’t the only problems you can have with your vision. Colorblindness is also common, as is astigmatism, which causes blurred visionat any distance.

These are all issues with the structure of the cornea and lens or with the retina. Even if none of these issues are present, a person could still have trouble seeing effectively if their eyes don’t work together well. Eye teaming, tracking, and focusing are all crucial visual skills for learning, as are hand-eye coordination and visual perception (the ability to mentally process what the eyes see).

Keep An Eye Out For Common Symptoms 

Children with vision problems are unlikely to tell their teachers and parents because they don’t realize the source of the problem. It’s crucial, therefore, for us adults to watch the children in our care for symptoms such as:

• Poor reading comprehension
• Slow to finish schoolwork
• Short attention span for close work
• Tendency to fidget and look away from work
• Frequent headaches
• Tendency to cover one eye
• Frequent blinking or eye-rubbing

If several of these symptoms sound a lot like the symptoms of ADHD and dyslexia, that’s no accident. Not being able to focus on close objects or use the eyes together as a team can make it unpleasant and frustrating to try to concentrate on their work. This gives the child the appearance of having a disorder like ADHD. In fact, many children are misdiagnosed as having ADHD when they really just have an undiagnosed vision problem.

Undiagnosed Vision Problems Affect Learning

Up to 80 percent of the learning children do is through their eyes, so having an undiagnosed and untreated vision problem can have far-reaching effects on their education, confidence, and ability to socialize. Unlike adults, kids might not know how to explain what’s wrong. They don’t know how other people see, they just know that even though trying to read words or stay focused on people’s faces is physically uncomfortable, they get in trouble for not doing it.

This frustrating situation leads them to act out and disengage from learning and other people, which is a tragedy. Luckily, however, it’s a tragedy that can be averted with comprehensive eye exams and correct treatment.

Comprehensive Eye Exams Go Beyond 20/20

Unlike the simple screening done by a school nurse, a comprehensive eye exam involves checking for color blindness, eye alignment (teaming), ocular motility (tracking), and depth perception in addition to doing the standard E-chart visual acuity test. Your optometrist would also check that the structures of your child’s eye look normal and healthy.

We’re Here For You And Your Children

Whether or not you suspect your child has a vision problem, our Doctors of Optometry would love to see them this summer to make sure their vision is working well or to start planning treatment for a vision problem.

Your family’s vision is our top priority!

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Solar Eclipse Eye Safety: Be Prepared!

Are you ready for the total solar eclipse on August 21?

What Is A Solar Eclipse?

The sun is about 400 times larger than the moon, but it’s also 400 times farther away from the earth, which is why they look the same size in the sky. When they line up with the earth just right, the moon can block out the sun, resulting in a solar eclipse. Anywhere the moon’s shadow falls, we see the eclipse, but it’s only a partial eclipse unless we’re in what’s called the “path of totality.”

What makes this year’s eclipse particularly rare and special is that it is a total eclipse. The moon’s orbit isn’t 100 percent consistent. Sometimes it’s closer to the earth and appears larger, and sometimes it’s farther away and appears smaller. When it lines up with the sun while farther away, the result is an annular eclipse, where you can still see a “ring of fire” around the silhouette of the moon because it isn’t big enough to completely block the sun.

A total eclipse only happens if the moon is closer to the earth when it lines up with the sun, and the only way we can see the diamond ring effect, the sun’s corona, stars during the day, and other amazing effects is during a total eclipse.

To learn a bit more about solar eclipses, check out the video below:

Shield Your Eyes!

It’s never a good idea to look at the sun, and that includes during a solar eclipse. It’s already important to wear UV-blocking sunglasses outside during the brightest hours of the day even when we aren’t looking directly at the sun. The light-sensitive cells that allow us to see are like delicate instruments, and looking at the sun overloads them. You can actually burn your retinas—a condition called solar retinopathy—by looking at the sun, and it doesn’t take long.

So how can we enjoy a solar eclipse if it’s never safe to look at the sun? We just need eclipse glasses! These are special glasses designed to block out all of the harmful UV rays and the excess light so that you can look at the solar eclipse without fear of damage to your eyes.

Eclipse Glasses Differ From Normal Sunglasses

Eclipse glasses are not the same as ordinary sunglasses, and even the very best polarized UV-blocking sunglasses are not sufficient protection for looking at the sun. In order to be approved by NASA, eclipse glasses can’t let more than 0.00032 percent of the sun’s light through them, they can’t have any bubbles or scratches, and they should include safety instructions printed on the earpieces. Do not risk your vision health by wearing eclipse glasses or using a solar viewer that doesn't meet ISO 12312-2 international safety standards.

Please contact us at www.visionsourcenw.com or 604.553.3900 if you have any questions!

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