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.