Your Child’s Vision
Has your child started squinting, holding books too close, following text with a finger or a ruler, or complaining of headaches? Do they have difficulty concentrating on reading? These may be signs of hidden farsightedness (hyperopia), nearsightedness (myopia), or eye misalignment (phoria).
Did you know:
- It’s possible to slow down the progression of myopia.
- Untreated farsightedness or hidden eye misalignment can make prolonged reading impossible, even if the child has good visual acuity.
During school vision screenings, children are referred for further testing with an optician, optometrist, or ophthalmologist if they cannot read the required line on the eye chart. However, children can compensate for mild farsightedness by squinting, and farsightedness, mild astigmatism, or eye misalignment are not always detected. If your child struggles to concentrate while reading or shows any of the symptoms mentioned above, we recommend a thorough eye examination. Crisp, comfortable vision is an essential foundation for a child’s schooling.
Nearsightedness (Myopia)
Nearsightedness means that one can see clearly up close but has blurred vision at a distance. This happens because the eye has grown too long, causing light to focus in front of the retina instead of directly on it.
As the eye grows with the development of myopia, the retina is stretched, increasing the risk of various eye diseases later in life. The more myopia develops, the longer the eye grows, making the retinal structure more vulnerable.
In the past, myopia was mainly corrected with minus lenses or contact lenses, but these do not prevent myopia progression. Today, there are special myopia control lenses that can slow down its development.
In addition to genetic factors, lifestyle also affects the progression of myopia. Causes may include insufficient time spent outdoors and increased close-up work, such as reading and using mobile devices. For normal visual development, two hours of outdoor time per day is recommended for children. Natural light, distance vision, and movement all contribute to healthy vision development.
Myopia Control
The progression of myopia can now be slowed with specially designed products. The earlier myopia develops, the greater the risk of high myopia, which most commonly progresses intensively during elementary school years. Therefore, it’s beneficial to begin myopia control as soon as myopia is detected. At Iris Opticians, we offer both eyeglass lenses and single-use contact lenses designed to control nearsightedness. The effectiveness of these products is monitored through regular eye exams and measurements of eye length. Read more about myopia and myopia control in English at https://www.mykidsvision.org/.
Farsightedness (Hyperopia)
With farsightedness, light is focused behind the retina. In children, accommodation—the eye’s ability to adjust focus for different distances—is strong, allowing for clear vision despite hyperopia. However, accommodation can lead to other challenges, such as headaches, blurry near vision, or strained reading.
Sometimes accommodation is so strong that eye drops are needed to temporarily limit its function to determine the correct prescription strength for glasses. Optometrists are authorized to use diagnostic medications, meaning a child with refractive errors no longer needs to be referred to an ophthalmologist for a glasses prescription. However, in Finland, optometrists are not yet permitted to prescribe glasses independently for children under eight, and in such cases, an ophthalmologist visit is required.
Hyperopia is corrected with plus lenses, either in glasses or contact lenses. If a child’s hyperopia is fully corrected, the glasses work well for reading, but due to accommodation, the child may not see clearly at a distance. To achieve clear distance vision, hyperopia often requires under-correction, which is not optimal for reading. The best solution for children with hyperopia is lenses that support near vision, where the distance prescription is under-corrected but with full correction in the lower part of the lens. These so-called youth progressive lenses allow the child to see comfortably at both distance and near range, which is helpful in school, where visual demands frequently shift between near and distance viewing.
Accommodation Flexibility and Convergence
Sometimes, strained or uncomfortable vision is due to issues with accommodation flexibility or convergence. Accommodation flexibility refers to the speed at which one can shift focus from distance to near vision and vice versa, while convergence is the eyes’ ability to align their gaze on the same point. In such cases, glasses with a distance prescription may feel uncomfortable for close-up tasks, and glasses for near vision can cause blurriness when looking far away. In addition to suitable glasses, exercises recommended by an optometrist can help improve both accommodation flexibility and convergence.
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