There are people who change their car’s oil like clockwork but skip their annual eye exams. Since these exams are strong indicators of overall health and can detect correction shortcomings that lead to eye strain or headaches, this is not a good routine to skip. Here are five reasons why eye exams in Oshkosh are important for you and any children living in your household:
- Issues do not always present symptoms: Eye problems often manifest before you notice symptoms. This does not mean they are less dangerous in these early stages; you basically have a ticking time bomb that one day becomes a blurry street sign. Your eye exam can find these problems before symptoms begin, which also makes them easier to treat. Catching eye diseases early can help you avoid symptoms entirely.
- Prescriptions change: Your eyes can also change quickly. This is especially true with children, who often require one prescription when they are younger but may need adjustments once they hit puberty. Since eyesight is directly linked to school performance and a love of learning, keeping prescriptions updated for young people is essential. As an adult, you likely want to avoid headaches and reduced work performance, too. Annual eye exams manage all these developments.
- Eyes reveal other health problems: Even if you had laser surgery correction or always enjoyed perfect eyesight, your eye exam can reveal other health problems early. Routine eye exams can discover brain tumors and diabetes before conventional physicals reveal them. By performing retinal photography, dilating eyes and testing peripheral vision, many eye doctors find issues that may have been unnoticed by other doctors. When you consider that these conditions may not have symptoms early on, the early detection that arises in an eye exam becomes a crucial tool.
- Monitor age-related developments: You may be retired and no longer have to spend eight hours a day staring at a computer screen. Your hobbies likely do not stress your eyes as much, but it is still important to see street signs and enjoy your favorite books. Also, age-related problems like cataracts affect at least half of Americans age 65 and older. Like many conditions, these respond best to treatment when they are detected early. Your best defense for reducing your risk of vision loss in the future is the annual eye exam.
- Technology demands: People who have no family history of eye disease or a need for vision correction can sometimes reduce the frequency of their eye exams. However, that recommendation emerged before technology took over our workplaces and smart phones became the Swiss Army knives of the modern world. The Kindle and other e-book products encourage reading but also additional screen time. The constant screen time that is a reality in the modern world also places new demands on eyesight. You may have good 20/20 vision now, but that can change in the future due to technology use. Getting correction when you need it reduces discomfort.
For eye exams in Oshkosh and other ocular services, call Dr. Jill’s Optical Shoppe today. We look forward to getting you on schedule and meeting all your vision correction needs.