September 3, 2024
Don’t overlook an essential aspect of school readiness: your child’s vision health.
Vision plays an important role in many aspects of a child’s development, and prioritizing an eye exam can help identify issues before they impact a school year. We spoke with Dr. Jane Gardiner, clinical professor of pediatric ophthalmology at UBC’s faculty of medicine, about why an eye exam may be the most important item on your child’s back-to-school checklist.
Why it is important for children to have their eyes checked?
Vision is critical to just about everything children do at school, from learning to social interactions and physical activity. But without an eye exam, many vision problems go undetected or get misdiagnosed. It’s vital that impairments are identified early so that children can receive the treatment, help or resources they need for success at school. Some treatments only work when the child is young, so the earlier problems are identified, the better.
Dr. Jane Gardiner
How often should children have their eyes checked?
For children where there is no family history of eye problems and no immediate vision concerns, a formal eye exam should be done before school entry at about 3.5 years of age, and then every one to two years once in school.
The problem is that a lot of these exams aren’t happening. Not every child has a primary care provider, and not every community has an ophthalmologist or optometrist. Some provinces and schools have a vision screening program, but this varies greatly across Canada.
In B.C., the school-based vision screening program was paused during the pandemic and hasn’t returned. So, it is up to parents to be vigilant and proactive about their child’s eye health. Parents will need to arrange an eye examination for their child, which is covered by B.C.’s provincial health plan, by speaking with their primary care provider or visiting the provincial optometry association website to find someone in their area.
What vision problems are common in children?
The most common issues are often the easiest and quickest to fix with a simple pair of glasses, including nearsightedness (trouble seeing far away), farsightedness (trouble seeing close up), and astigmatism (blurry or distorted vision at all distances).
Other problems can include misaligned or crossed eyes, where both eyes do not look at the same place at the same time. Another condition, amblyopia or lazy eye, occurs when the eye and the brain do not work well together on one side versus the other, causing blurry vision. Both these conditions are commonly treated with either glasses, patching or surgery, but early diagnosis and treatment are key to preventing long-term challenges.
What signs of a vision problem should parents watch out for?
The physical signs can be quite obvious, for instance, if one eye wanders, points a different direction, or appears different than the other. But parents should watch for other clues such as squinting, sitting too close to the TV, complaining of headaches or tired eyes, rubbing their eyes frequently, or struggling with reading.
It becomes much more difficult to notice poor vision affecting only one eye, as people can usually adapt and manage with the other eye, allowing the problem to go unnoticed. An eye exam is often the only way to detect these issues.
What proactive steps can keep a child’s eyes healthy?
Beyond an eye examination, it’s important to protect your child’s eyes with sunglasses and a hat outdoors, and wearing proper eye protection during high-risk activities like sports.
Screen time is also a big concern. There is increasing evidence to show that excessive screen time and lack of outdoor time can promote progression of nearsightedness. Studies have also shown that rates of nearsightedness are on the rise in children, particularly after the pandemic with increased time at home in front of screens.
Parents can encourage healthy screen habits by following the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, have your child take a 20-second break and look at something 20 feet away to relax their eyes. This should be accompanied by a whole-body break at least every 60 minutes. Also, aim for 2 hours of outdoor play daily to help slow the progression of nearsightedness.