Does Your Child Needs Glasses? How To Tell

12:43 AM Posted by Deanna - Mommygaga

A friend of mine's 4 year old had been saying his eyes hurt for a while, but it was very random and seemed to be accompanied with a whine whenever he wanted something, when he was tired or wasn't getting his way. She recently noticed her son squinting while looking at books, toys, and other things close up, so she had to take him in for a check up. She placed a call to her primary doctor and was then referred to an optometrist. Sure enough, her little man needed eyeglasses.

My family does not have a history of eye or vision problems, so I had no idea what to tell her or how to help. She had never been through this before either, so we decided to do a little research on children's eyesight and prescription glasses. Here's what we found:

It is very common for children to wear glasses, One in four school aged kids experience vision problems.
About 80 percent of all learning for children up to age 12 is accomplished through sight
Testing in schools is not completely accurate or thorough enough to tell if your child has vision problems. Schools only test visual acuity, they don’t test for being farsighted or for focusing.
The eyes can be tested for a number of factors: myopia (nearsightedness), hyperopia (farsightedness), astigmatism (mis-shaped refractive surface) and strabismus (one eye turns farther out or in than the other)
Kids can actually wear contact lenses, dependent upon their individual personality and maturity level. Many children actually like them.

How do you know if your child needs glasses? Look for the signs, which, according to Rene Soltis of the Vision Council of America, can include squinting, closing or covering one eye, tilting head to one side, rubbing eyes repeatedly, using a finger as a place-mark while reading, complaints of headaches when reading or writing, and dislike or avoidance of close work.

To make your child comfortable, take a moment to talk to your child about wearing glasses. Don't make it sound like it's a problem, but instead another part of daily life, like using the restroom, wearing shoes, etc. You can even point out other people you know that wear glasses, as well as well-like celebrities. When looking for an optometrist, ask other parents if they know of any good eye doctors in your area. Pay them a visit, see if the staff is child friendly and understanding. Also ask how long the exam will take and what type of tests will be performed so you can explain this to your child in advance. They actually have some cool looking prescription eyeglasses on the market, so hopefully their appearance will help your child feel better about wearing them.