The most common form of vision problems are solved with corrective lenses whether that is with eyeglasses or contacts.  If contacts are the option that is right for you, did you know that selecting contacts can be much like selecting designer frames?

Today, contacts come in all sorts of colors and designs.  There are color tints simply to help you see your contacts better, those to change or enhance your eye color or even novelty lenses for over-the-top costume parties.  When properly prescribed and handled, tinted lenses can be a practical choice and colored contact lenses can add a lot of fun to every day use and special occasions.

The major manufacturers of contact lenses offer three types of tints for colored contacts: visibility tint, enhancement tint and opaque tint. The power level of each of these tints will determine the significance of change in eye color.

• Visibility tint typically does not influence eye color.  It is simply a light green or blue hue added to a contact lens to make the lens more visible to the wearer when handling for placement in your eye.
• Enhancement tints are slightly deeper tints meant to enrich the wearer’s natural eye color.
• Opaque tint contact lenses will completely mask the wearer’s true eye color, transforming the eye to an entirely different color.

Colored contacts are typically sold as 2-4 week replacement lenses and have excellent safety ratings.  While colored contacts can be prescribed to patients who require vision correction, they can also be used for those who simply want to change their eye color.  In either case, a contact lens prescription and fitting is required. It is imperative to your eye health to use only contacts that are prescribed to you by your eye doctor.  This is a particularly important reminder for anyone considering contacts only to enhance or change your eye color or as a novelty lens as part of a costume.

This Halloween if you are thinking about novelty lenses, it is imperative to use caution when purchasing, wearing and caring for the contact lenses.  Novelty lenses are not made by any of the major contact lens manufacturers and generally must be ordered from specialty websites at a premium price. In most cases, these contacts can only be worn occasionally and only for short periods of time. Before buying colored or novelty contacts online, consult with your local eye doctor at Johnson Optometric for advice.

When considering colored contacts lenses, a prescription and proper care are just as important as with standard contact lenses. Colored contacts are a perfect way to enhance your look this fall, so ask us at Johnson Optometric about your options.  But, as always, the safety and health of your eyes always comes first.

In this second installment of Johnson Optometric’s Save Your Sight Month series, we turn our attention to common external eye hazards. By taking some simple precautions in your everyday routine, you can prevent eye injury and keep your eyes healthy as you age.

Save Your Sight Tip #1 – Wear quality sunglasses with Ultraviolet (UV) protection to prevent eye disease.

Most people know that UV radiation can harm your skin, but did you know it’s just as dangerous to your eyes? Long-term exposure can lead to conditions like cataracts or macular degeneration. Damage can occur any time during the year, even on cloudy days. So keep those sunglasses handy no matter what the weather report says.

Save Your Sight Tip #2 – Choose polarized lenses to prevent impaired vision.

Glare-induced “blindness” often contributes to car accidents. Polarized lenses use filtering technology to eliminate nearly all reflected glare. Glare from snow, sidewalks, cars and other reflective surfaces can also increase the impact of UV radiation. Consider sunglasses with polarized lenses and UV protection. Avoid both eye hazards with style.

Save Your Sight Tip #3 – Use protective sports eyewear to prevent eye injury.

Prescription eyeglasses are not the same as protective eyewear. Neither are sunglasses. Lenses in sports eyewear are usually made of polycarbonate. This impact-resistant material works well to protect eyes from fast-moving objects. Visit your local sporting goods store to learn more about the most appropriate type of protective eyewear and ensure proper fit. This is especially important for kids.

Save Your Sight Tip #4 – Put on safety goggles for household projects to prevent eye injury.

According to a recent survey by the American Academy of Ophthalmology, more than 40 percent of eye injuries at home involved repairs, yard work, cleaning and cooking. Consider the risk of flying debris, projectiles or sharp objects that could injure the eye. Invest in safety goggles and err on the side of caution. Don’t end up in the emergency room for something you could easily prevent.

Save Your Sight Tip #5 – Take regular computer breaks to prevent eyestrain.

On average, Americans spend six to nine hours each day using computers. To reduce eyestrain, try the 20-20-20 rule. Look away from your computer every 20 minutes at a distant object 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. For those who use computers at work, take several five-minute “mini-breaks” throughout the day. 

Save Your Sight Tip #6 – Adjust indoor air quality to prevent eye irritation.

If you’ve been experiencing dry eye, it might be your indoor air quality. Maintain appropriate humidity indoors and use a high-quality air filter. Make sure the air vents aren’t blowing directly at you; this can also create dry eye symptoms.

Just a few small changes can mean the difference in seeing clearly for years to come. At Johnson Optometric, we encourage you to Save Your Sight and put these tips into practice today. Visit us for recommendations on sunglasses and other protective eyewear to suit your lifestyle. We look forward to serving you at either our Fuquay-Varina or Garner location.

Every September at Johnson Optometric, we look forward to sharing Save Your Sight Month with our patients. We all know that some changes in vision are a natural part of the aging process. However, Save Your Sight Month reminds us that while you cannot avoid all eye conditions, you can drastically reduce your risk and improve your long-term vision by taking a few simple preventative steps.

Schedule regular eye exams. Annual comprehensive eye examinations are the single best way to safeguard your eyesight at all stages of life. For children and adults, regardless of perceived level of vision, eye exams are critical. Eye exams not only check for vision correction needs but checking eye health is often a window into other health issues elsewhere in the body. According to the American Optometric Association (AOA), children need their first eye exam at six months of age, another at age three and again at the start of school. At Johnson Optometric, we recommend all children have a yearly exam after age five and through adulthood.

Make sure you schedule an eye exam every year for long-term eye health if you have one of these risk factors.
• Prescription contact lenses or glasses
• Family history of eye diseases like glaucoma and macular degeneration
• Diagnosis of diabetes or high blood pressure
• Occupation that places heavy demands on eyes
• Potential visual side effects from prescription or over-the-counter drugs
• Previous eye injuries or surgery

Ask about your family history. When left undiagnosed, genetic eye conditions such as glaucoma and macular degeneration often have no early symptoms and are only detectable in early stages through an eye exam. These conditions can needlessly lead to permanent vision loss. Eye doctors can perform an eye pressure check and take retinal photographs to detect issues early and prevent disease progression.

Follow contact lens care instructions. More than 34 million people in the US wear contact lenses. While convenient, it’s easy to become lax about their care. Clean and dispose of your lenses carefully according to the instructions. Don’t use lenses beyond their recommended wear time or sleep in them unless directed by your doctor. If you find it difficult to keep up with the cleaning required for prescription lenses, ask about disposable and extended-wear lenses.

Take care of your body. A variety of vegetables, especially leafy greens, can ensure you have the right vitamins and minerals to support retinal function. Vitamins E and C, zinc, lutein, zeaxanthin and omega-3 fatty acids all affect eye health. Staying tobacco-free can also prevent many eye diseases, including macular degeneration.

Be careful with your eye makeup. A few best practices to keep in mind — Introduce one new kind of eye makeup at a time in case of allergic reaction. Never share makeup. Dispose of liquid makeup every three months. Make sure your eyes are clean before application and always remove makeup before going to bed.

To continue our focus on Save Your Sight Month, next we’ll discuss common external eye hazards and easy ways to protect your vision every day. With these tips and regular eye exams from the doctors at Johnson Optometric, you will be well on your way to Saving Your Sight.

Here at Johnson Optometric, we cater our eye care services to all members of the family.  In particular, we love working with children to diagnose and treat pediatric eye health concerns. In fact, pediatric eye care is one of our practice specialties and distinguishing features.

1. We are not only optometrists and technicians; we are parents and grandparents.  Within our own family life as well as from our pediatric patients, we are highly familiar with the pediatric age group and all of the joys and challenges involved.
2. We have special diagnostic instruments geared towards examining children’s eyes and are experienced in using them – with both cooperative and uncooperative juvenile patients.
3. For children not yet comfortable with reading letters, we have picture charts to use in vision assessment. This makes children feel more comfortable and at ease during the examination.
4. We make family scheduling easy by offering multiple appointments in adjoining time slots.  A great solution for large families with multiple children.

Our extensive experience with pediatric patients provides a high level of knowledge in pediatric eye problems and we understand how to interact with children to ensure their comprehensive eye exam is a positive experience.  After fully exploring the medical and vision history of both the child and the family, we also explore potential vision risks related to the child’s activities and interests.  Only then do we begin the physical exam and diagnosis.  Once a diagnosis is complete, we educate both the parents and child on the problems at hand and options for correction.  If corrective glasses or contact lenses are required, we also educate the children on proper care for these items.

As a part of pediatric eye exams, we highly recommend dilating children’s eyes in order to get the most accurate reading for their prescription.  While eye drops may cause some short-lived discomfort for your child, it is far less uncomfortable than spending the entire school year unable to keep up with the rest of their classmates.  If you think your child will be anxious about eye drops, here are a few tips for helping them through the experience:

• Set a calm tone by making eye drops seem insignificant
• Provide reassurance by holding their hand during the exam
• For inquisitive kids, present the eye drops as a neat new experience
• For nervous kids, consider a fun incentive for being good during the exam such as going out for ice cream afterwards

Pediatric eye exams bring your child’s vision into focus and create a basis for lifelong eye health.  By selecting the right eye doctor, your child will be ready to tackle anything within their sight.

When it comes to children’s health, parents often need to be detectives.  This is particularly true when it comes to eyesight and vision.  Young children don’t have the life experience to realize that they should be able to see more clearly.  Parents can detect vision issues by watching for a few warning signs:

• Squinting
• Getting closer to objects to see them
• Excessive blinking or rubbing of the eyes
• Favoring one eye
• Headaches
• Sensitivity to light
• Doesn’t like reading or gets tired easily when reading

While these warning signs are the most recognizable to parents, children with vision problems often do not complain of any symptoms that make it difficult for parents to assess the issue.  Parents are often unconcerned once a child has received vision clearance from a pediatrician.  However, most medical screenings for school only assess a child’s ability to see at a given distance and often leave many potential problems undetected.

Poor vision that goes undetected can cause your child to miss out on some childhood experiences, particularly in school.  Children need sharp vision for both distance and reading to take advantage of all aspects of learning.  Poor vision in school-aged children can cause high levels of frustration and difficulty understanding new subjects, potentially resulting in low grades, short attention span and emotional outbursts.

Evaluating children’s eye health is more than just reading the Eye Chart. At Johnson Optometric, our doctors and staff handle vision and eye problems for patients of all ages, starting at one year old. This begins with a careful review of the child’s medical history, eye symptoms, and family eye history. We identify risk factors for vision problems before examining the child. Our doctors at Johnson Optometric Associates are trained to detect problems such as eye muscle coordination, depth perception, and color vision deficiencies that can later lead to learning and reading problems.

If vision or other eye problems are detected during the eye exam, our doctors take the necessary time to discuss the diagnosis and treatment options with parents and family. Treatment options vary by patient but often involve corrective lenses, glasses or contact lenses, and sometimes referral for specialized visual therapy.

Our optical staff has over 60 years of combined experience in providing our pediatric patients with the correct fitting frames and using the best in polycarbonate lenses for eye protection.  Send your children back to school with all the tools they need for success, and the 20/20 vision with which to see them.