Many people do not know the risk of injury to their eye nor do they dedicate much attention to their eye health until something is wrong. There are many important steps to take to prevent severe eye diseases and blindness that should begin now. For starters, an annual eye exam is recommended for everyone, every year. Exams are an important part of health maintenance to keep prescriptions current and to check for early signs of eye disease and can prevent many leading causes of blindness. Many eye diseases and disorders become more common as we get older and advances in ophthalmology allow most people to maintain their vision. Many eye problems can be prevented or corrected if detected in their early stages. For children, eye exams can play an important role in normal development. Vision is closely linked to the learning process. Children who have trouble seeing or interpreting what they see will often have trouble with their schoolwork. Many times, children will not complain of vision problems simply because they don’t know what “normal” vision looks like. If your child performs poorly at school or exhibits a reading or learning disability, be sure to have his eyes examined to rule out an underlying visual cause.
Follow these tips to protect your eyes:
Protect your eyes from the sun
Like your skin, your eyes can be exposed to UV rays. Studies show that exposure to bright sunlight may increase the risk of developing leading causes of vision loss. UV exposure, wind and dust can also cause pterygia, benign growths on the eye’s surface. Select sunglasses that block ultraviolet rays. Don’t be deceived by color or cost. The ability to block UV light is not dependent on the darkness of the lens or the price tag.
Be safe and prevent eye injury
More than one million people suffer eye injuries each year in the United States. Appropriate protective eyewear could prevent 90 percent of these injuries. Choose protective eyewear with “ANSI Z87.1″ marked on the lens or frame. This means the glasses, goggles, or face shield meets the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Z87.1 safety standard.
In the house
When using household chemicals, read instructions and labels carefully, work in a well-ventilated area and make sure to point spray nozzles away from you. Many chemicals are extremely hazardous and can permanently destroy the surface of your eyes, resulting in blindness.
In the workshop
Wear protective eyewear to shield your eyes from flying fragments, fumes, dust particles, sparks and splashing chemicals. Many objects can fly into your eyes unexpectedly and cause injury.
In the garden
Put on protective eyewear before you use a lawn mower, power trimmer or edger and be sure to check for rocks and stones because they can become dangerous fragments as they shoot from these machines.
the workplace
Wear appropriate safety eyewear for your job. Many of the thousands injured each day didn’t think they needed eye protection or were wearing inappropriate eyewear for the job.
Around the car
Battery acid, sparks and debris from damaged or improperly jump-started auto batteries can severely damage your eyes. Keep protective goggles in the trunk of your car to use for those emergencies and everyday repairs.
During sports and recreation
Boxing and full-contact martial arts pose an extremely high risk of serious and even blinding eye injuries. Contact lenses offer NO PROTECTION, and contact lens wearers require additional protection when participating in sports. Choose protective eyewear with “ANSI Z87.1″ marked on the lens or frame.
These tips were recommended and supported by the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the eye health Web site, All About Vision.
The tips will help prevent eye injury and aid in the prevention of eye illness and blindness; however, if you do happen to experience any eye injury or experience itching, swelling, burning, trauma, pain, blur or spots that are not immediately relieved by basic remedies such as eye lubricant, you should consult your eye doctor immediately to have your eyes checked.