eye myths

Contact Lens Myths

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Are you afraid of wearing contact lenses? Check out these contact lens myths debunked and then decide if they are right for you.

MYTH: I can’t wear contact lenses

Just about everyone can now wear contact lenses thanks to technological advances. Some of the advances now allow those with astigmatism and those who need bifocal contact lenses.

MYTH: A contact lens will get lost behind my eye

It’s impossible for a contact lens to get lost behind your eye. That’s because a thin membrane called the conjunctiva covers the white of your eye and connects to the inside of your eyelids.

MYTH: Contact lenses are uncomfortable

There is a brief period for you to get adapted to the change, but you will likely not notice that you are wearing contact lenses. There are remedies available should the contact lenses cause discomfort.

MYTH: Contact lenses can get permanently stuck to my eye

Soft contact lens can stick to the surface of your eye if it’s dried out. However, you can remoisten the lens by applying sterile saline or multipurpose contact lens solution to get it moving again.

MYTH: Contact lenses are too much trouble to take care of

One-bottle contact lens care systems make cleaning your lenses easy. Alternatively, you can choose to eliminate the care altogether by getting daily disposables or 30-day extendable wear ones.

MYTH: Wearing contact lenses cause eye problems

If you follow your eye doctor’s instructions on how to care for your lenses, how long to wear them and how frequently to replace them, wearing contact lenses is safe.

MYTH: I’ll never be able to get them in my eyes

It might be difficult at first, but your eye care professional will make sure you learn how to apply and remove them before you leave their office.

MYTH: Contacts can pop out of my eye

The old-fashioned hard ones could, but today’s contacts fit closer to the eye so it’s very rare for one to dislodge from a wearer’s eye unexpectedly.

MYTH: Contact lenses are too expensive

They can be less expensive than a good pair of eyeglasses. Even daily disposable lenses can cost about a dollar a day.

MYTH: I’m too old to wear contact lenses

Thanks to the bifocal contact lenses and contacts designed for dry eyes, getting older is no longer a barrier to successful contact lenses. You should ask your doctor if you’re a candidate for contacts.

At Performance Eyecare, we can routinely fit our contact lens patients the same day as their exam. Get in touch with your local office to schedule your contact lens appointment today!

ADHD & Vision Problems

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Children Diagnosed with ADHD May Actually Have Vision Problems

ADHD, Performance Eyecare, Illinois Doctos, Missouri Doctors

Have you ever considered whether your child’s attention issues are directly related to their vision? Most people would probably answer no to this question, but the American Optometric Association discusses just that in this article; they state that children with the following symptoms may not actually have attention issues or ADHD, but problems with their visual skills:

  • Avoid reading and other near visual work as much as possible.
  • Attempt to do the work anyway, but with a lowered level of comprehension or efficiency.
  • Experience discomfort, fatigue and a short attention span.

What Signs Should I Look For?

The Center for Disease Control, the CDC, has a checklist dedicated to ADHD and the symptoms that may show in a child who has ADHD. Here are a few of the symptoms. A full list can be found here:

  • Often does not give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork, work, or other activities.
  • Is often forgetful in daily activities.
  • Often avoids, dislikes, or doesn’t want to do things that take a lot of mental effort for a long period of time (such as schoolwork or homework).

As you can see, the signs of vision problems can mimic the signs of ADHD. Ruling out a potential vision issue may help your child succeed in school because they can get the medical or therapeutic help that they need. On the other hand, if what they need is glasses, we can help with that.

If your child is experiencing any of the above struggles, it’s time to get them in for an eye exam to rule out potential vision problems. Undiagnosed vision issues can lead to your child under-performing in school because they cannot see well enough to complete their work in order to succeed. Because your child’s eye needs can change over time, it’s possible that you are seeing these issues arise for the first time. Catching the problem as early as possible is vital. Children’s eyecare starts with regular examinations to catch potential issues before they hamper a child’s ability to succeed in school.

Performance Eyecare Can Help

At Performance Eyecare, we regularly treat a variety of eye conditions in children. We have offices all around the St. Louis region for your conveinence. Our experienced optometrists can complete your child’s eye exam, diagnose any issues with their vision, and then we can create a pair of custom glasses for your child in our in-office eyeglass laboratory.

Please contact us to schedule an appointment. Our experienced optometrists will be happy to answer any questions that you may have regarding children’s eye exams or vision problems and school performance, as well as what makes our eyeglass facility stand out in terms of quality and price. We look forward to hearing from you.

Eye Myths and Facts

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Can using someone else’s prescription glasses harm your eyes? Will sitting to close to the television ruin your eyes? Will crossing your eyes to long make them permanently stick like that?! Everyone has heard many eye rumors, many from your parents growing up. The questions everyone has is, are they true? Below is a list of eye myths and facts. I bet you will be shocked by some of them. Don’t be afraid to share this with your parents!

Reading in poor light will hurt the eyes: Before the invention of electric light, most nighttime reading and other work was done by dim candlelight or gaslight. Reading in dim light today won’t harm our eyes any more than it did our ancestors’ eyes or any more than taking a photograph in dim light will damage a camera.

Holding a book too close or sitting too close to the television set is harmful to the eyes: Many children with excellent vision like to hold books very near to their eyes or sit close to the television set. Their youthful eyes focus very well up close, so this behavior is natural to them, and it is safe. Children and adults who are nearsighted might need to get close to a book or television set to see clearly. Doing so does not cause or worsen nearsightedness or any other kinds of eye problem.

Using the eyes too much and “wear them out”: We wouldn’t lose our sense of smell by using our nose too much or our hearing by using our ears too much. The eyes were made for seeing. We won’t lose our vision by using our eyes for their intended purpose.

Wearing eyeglasses that are too strong or have the wrong prescription will damage the eyes: Eyeglasses change the light rays that the eye receives. They do not change any part of the eye itself. Wearing glasses that are too strong or otherwise wrong for the eyes cannot harm an adult’s, although it might result in a temporary headache. At worse, the glasses will fail to correct vision and make the wearer uncomfortable because of blurriness, but no damage to any part of the eye will result.

Wearing eyeglasses will weaken the eyes: The eyeglasses worn to correct nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism, or presbyopia will not weaken the eyes any more than they will permanently “cure” these kinds of vision problems. Glasses are simply external optical aids that provide vision to people with blurred vision caused by refractive errors. Exceptions are the kinds of glasses given to children with crossed eyes (strabismus) or lazy eye (amblyopia). These glasses are used temporarily to help straighten the eyes or improve vision. Not wearing such glasses may lead to permanently defective vision.

Crossing the eyes can make them permanently crossed: Our eye muscles are meant to allow us to move our eyes in many different directions. Looking left, right, up, or down, will not force the eyes to stay permanently crossed. Crossed eyes result from disease, from uncorrected refractive error, or from muscle or nerve damage, not from forcing the eyes into that position.

Having 20/20 vision means that the eyes are perfect: The term “20/20” denotes a person with excellent central vision. But other types of vision-such as side vision, night vision, or color vision might be imperfect. Some potentially blinding eye disease, such as glaucoma or diabetic retinopathy, can take years to develop. During this time, they are harming parts of the inner eye, but the central vision can remain unaffected.

http://mayoclinichealthsystem.org/locations/la-crosse/medical-services/ophthalmology/myths-and-facts