You Should Take Your Child to the Optometrist Earlier Than You Think.
My husband and I have been wearing glasses and contact lenses since childhood, so I have always believed that for our son it is only a matter of time. But he hasn’t started squinting or complaining of headaches, and he has an eye exam every year at school, so I figured it’s okay for now. You don’t need to take him to an ophthalmologist, right?
But then I came across an article about Motherly written by an optometrist who says that yearly school screenings and good pediatric exams are a good start, but regular comprehensive vision exams are important for fast developing eyes.
I found the recommendations of the American Optometric Association :
- Initial exam between the ages of 6 and 12 months.
- At least one exam between ages 3 and 5.
- Until the first class and from that moment on annually.
(And potentially sooner or more often if the child is at significant risk of vision or vision problems; you can see the full list of risk factors here .)
I was still not sure if these guidelines meant taking the child to a real optometrist and not a pediatrician or school nurse, so I reached out to the AOA to ask. The organization’s president, Samuel D. Pearce, said yes: take them to the optometrist.
“Children’s eyes undergo rapid changes during the first six years of life — a time when routine, comprehensive vision exams are critical to good vision,” Pierce told me in an email. “Unfortunately, over-reliance on eye exams by pediatricians or other primary care physicians can lead to late detection of visual impairment. The earlier a vision problem is diagnosed and treated, the less it will affect a person’s quality of life. But many parents do not know and do not think to take their child to an ophthalmologist first.
In particular, according to Pierce, myopia (or myopia) has become common among school-aged children in the United States. And early intervention can help control its progression. In addition, optometrists look for farsightedness, amblyopia, astigmatism, eye coordination, eye muscle function, and focusing ability.
“Even if the test is done in a pediatrician or general practitioner’s office, the scope of the eye test may be limited by the type of equipment available,” Pierce says. “Factors such as room lighting, test spacing, and maintenance of test equipment can also affect test results.”
When children “pass” a school vision test, parents may have the false impression that everything is okay, or it may not. Screening is one tool, but not enough.
“The information obtained from eye examinations is comparable to information obtained from blood pressure measurements. Your blood pressure may be within the normal range, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have other health problems, ”says Pierce. “This is just a single measure of one aspect of your overall health. Just as you need your complete physical condition to assess your overall health, only a comprehensive eye and vision examination can assess your overall health and vision. ”
Let’s go to the optometrist! Better late than never, right?