Why Is Eye Care Important for Kids?

Decreasing vision and other eyesight issues sound like a problem for aging adults. While it’s true that eyesight can decline much more rapidly after age 50, concerns for eye health and visual acuity are far from being a problem only for adults. Your children can also experience issues with their eyesight and eye health. Keep reading to learn why you should look for a pediatric eye center near me and take your kids in for an annual eye exam.

Lazy Eyes and Crossed Eyes

Both crossed eyes and lazy eyes (formally known as amblyopia) would be very common problems for young children, especially if either parent had these conditions in their childhood. The good news is that, if treated properly early on, these conditions can typically be corrected without invasive or painful surgery. Using an eyepatch to help strengthen the “weak” eye can correct the problem relatively quickly. However, if this issue is ignored, it can become much more serious and require surgery to correct—if it can be corrected at all.

Most parents would notice on their own if their child is becoming cross-eyed or developing a lazy eye. However, a pediatric optometrist is likely to catch this issue much sooner, so you can get treatment sooner. Because the issue will not be as severe when caught earlier, your child can typically spend less time wearing an eyepatch to correct it.

Hereditary Eye Conditions

Many pediatric eye conditions are hereditary. If there is a history of poor eyesight (particularly poor eyesight early on in childhood) in the family, then your child is more likely to have these same issues. As already mentioned, other childhood issues with eyesight like amblyopia are also inherited. While you certainly shouldn’t ignore your child’s eye care needs simply because your family has a history of good eyesight, it is a good idea to take extra care about having those regular eye checkups if your family has a history of any eye conditions.

Support Better Learning

A child’s primary duty is to attend school and learn all they can. That’s much more difficult to do if your child can’t see the board in the classroom. Your child may struggle to understand concepts they would otherwise grasp quite easily, simply because they can’t clearly see the visual aids being used.

Additionally, straining to see the board can cause headaches and eyestrain, making it difficult to focus in the classroom, even when the task is in front of them and easy to see. Supporting your child’s overall eye health also supports their learning in the classroom.

Schedule an Appointment Today

As a parent, you do all you can to take care of your child’s health and well-being; their eye health should not be an exception to that. Your child’s vision and eye health can impact many areas of their life, from social situations to in-school learning. If it’s been some time since your child has had an eye exam (or if they’ve never had one with an optometrist before), contact Bay Hill Eye Care today to schedule an exam at an eye center near me. Our optometrists specialize in pediatric care and diagnosing and treating pediatric conditions related to your child’s vision and overall eye health. Contact us today, and we’ll schedule an eye exam for your child, so we can help you ensure that their visual health is properly cared for.