Children’s vision.
How is it damaged and repaired?

WHEN SHOULD I HAVE MY CHILDREN’S GROWTH CHECKED?

An ophthalmologist examines a newborn’s eyes in the delivery room. The condition of the fundus, optical dispersion, etc. is then assessed. Independent visits to the doctor’s office should be made before the age of half a year. If no visual changes are detected, the next visit should be after the child is one year old. Then vision is checked by monitoring eye movements, the ability to see small objects and the fundus is checked again. This is done by dilating the pupils with eye drops.

If your eyes are healthy and your doctor has not advised you to come earlier, then you should have another preventive check-up at the age of three and another one at the age of five or six, before school.

What to look out for?

Parents should pay attention and seek medical attention earlier if the child tries to sit closer to the TV, reads and opens books close to the eyes, rubs the eyes, complains of eye fatigue, hesitation or headaches, tears or fears of bright light, squinting, constant redness, etc.

Visible and hidden diseases

The most common visual disorders in children are farsightedness, astigmatism, and myopia, strabismus, and amblyopia (lazy eye) in school-age children.

Doctors have the most problems with long-standing untreated or undiagnosed strabismus, lazy eye due to strabismus, or refractive error in one eye. However, if the child is screened in time, these defects are easily detected and the treatment results are good.

Beginner’s guide to the eyes

  • Farsighted people need high-framed glasses (plus), through which they can see well at a distance and read fine print without fatigue. They need to wear glasses all the time. The right glasses, chosen in time, protect the eyes from fatigue and strabismus.
  • Myopia is the most common cause of visual impairment in children, but only 1-2% of myopia is congenital. It usually develops during school age, although more recently myopia has been increasingly diagnosed in children preparing to start school. Heredity, unhealthy lifestyle habits, infectious diseases, poor diet, vitamin deficiencies, etc. play an important role in its development.
  • Astigmatism is quite common in children. Astigmatism causes blurred and distorted images on the retina. Cylindrical or sphero-cylindrical lenses are prescribed to correct this visual impairment.

These refractive errors are corrected in children as young as 10 months old. If spectacles are not worn in time, strabismus is very common.

  • Strangulation. If the eye is naturally or prematurely strabismic, the deviated eye is in most cases almost blind. Children with strabismus are treated from the age of 10 months, with glasses for permanent wear (sometimes binoculars), special exercises such as covering the eye that can see well, irradiation with various devices, orthoptic treatment, and surgical treatment.
carrots

Will carrots help?

The importance of nutrition for both the overall development of the body and the condition of the eyes cannot be denied. Vitamin A is involved in photochemical reactions in the retina. Carrot juice is rich in vitamin A and is therefore of real value. Just remember, vitamin A is fat-soluble, so to absorb it, carrot juice must be flavoured with cream or preceded by a bite of fatty food.

Parents should help their child to develop the right skills by setting the example that it is not necessary to sit in front of the computer all day or spend time in front of the TV, as not only the eyes will suffer, but also the entire mental and physical health.

Registering with an ophthalmologist