World Sight Day
October is the month in which we celebrate World Sight Day. The second Thursday of October every year, World Sight Day is the time to focus attention on eye health as a global issue. During World Sight Day we seek to help everyone understand the magnitude of the problem, communicate about avoidable vision loss, and encourage everyone who can to prioritize their eye health.
Did You Know That?
Globally 1.1 billion people experience vision loss primarily because they do not have access to eye health services when they need them. Of the 1.1 billion people with vision loss, over 50% of them are female.
Over 90 million children and adolescents have vision impairment or blindness. Sadly, about 40% of children are blind from conditions that could be managed or prevented if the child had access to eye care services.
Why is Vision So Important?
Vision is a two-part process; the eyes focus on and create an image then the brain interprets the image to understand what we are seeing. We use our vision for many important tasks, it is one of the main ways we gain information about the world around us. Poor vision can impact many areas of life. Many of our daily tasks rely on being able to see well, from reading to recognizing faces to playing sports. Children with vision loss often experience more symptoms of anxiety and depression and often achieve poorer outcomes at school.
What is 20/20 Vision?
A person with 20/20 vision can see what an average individual can see on an eye chart when they are standing 20 feet away. For example, if you have 20/30 vision, it means your vision is worse than average. Twenty feet away, you can read letters most people see from 30 feet. 20/20 vision is not perfect vision. A person can have 20/15 vision, which is sharper than average.
Not sure if your vision is at its best?
Think about the following:
Do you feel like rubbing your eyes all the time?
Do you find it difficult to focus or follow moving objects?
Do your eyes tear up often? Or when you try to read?
Do you find it difficult or painful to look at light?
Do you have a headache or feel that your eyes are often tired?
Have any of your friends/family told you that one of your eyes turns in or out or doesn’t always look straight?
Is the TV blurred when you sit further from the screen?
If you answered “yes” to one or more of these questions you may have an issue with your vision and should discuss it with your eye doctor.
What can I do to keep my eyes healthy?
- Always attend your regularly scheduled eye exams.
- Follow the 20/20/20 rule for screen breaks.
- Spend time outside so your eyes can develop in a healthy way. Children should spend at least two hours a day outside.
- Wear sunglasses and make sure they have UVA and UVB protection.
- Wear your prescription glasses.
- Exercise regularly. Regular exercise can reduce the risk of developing conditions like diabetes or high blood pressure which can affect your sight.
- Eat a healthy diet.
- Stop smoking. Smoking increases your risk of developing serious eye conditions and permanent sight loss.
