As you begin making your resolution to be healthier this new year, don’t leave out two of the most important parts of your body: your eyes. With the demands that are put on our eyes every day, it is essential to take care of them and even exercise them to strengthen them and possibly improve your vision. In the past, people were hunters, farmers and gatherers. They were used to looking over far distances to seek prey and other possible sources of food. But now we live in a 2D world, where....
What happened the last time you went on the Mad Tea Party ride at DisneyWorld? Did you enjoy yourself initially, but as the ride went on, did you start to feel sick and disoriented? When you closed your eyes, however, you probably felt much better. And you were immensely glad when the ride ended and you could get your bearings again.
The eye is amazing. Did you know more than 1.9 million fibers come from the eye into the brain? Each of those fibers creates its own pathway to the brain and has its own distinct function. So when someone has a stroke or other acquired brain injury (ABI), vision is often affected. ABIs include concussions suffered in severe sports-
If you are coming in to your 40s, you may be noticing that your eyesight is changing. You have to strain a little to read, holding the book or newspaper farther away, or you find you need to wear bifocals. You may even notice a bit of clouding of the lens of your eyes. What is going on? Your eyes, like many other parts of the body, are showing signs of aging. The Crystalline lens in your eye is becoming less flexible. This makes it more difficult for the lens to adjust and focus when you look from far to near.
The American Optometric Association recommends preschool children receive a complete vision exam at the ages of 6 months, 3 years and 5 years. It is particularly important a child have a complete evaluation in the summer prior to entry into kindergarten. Kentucky was the first state to make a law that says you have to have an exam by a optometrist or ophthalmologist the first time you enter Kentucky public schools. The main thing is to make sure children are seeing the black/ whiteboard.
Vision involves over 70% of the neural pathways of the brain. Vision is more than eye sight. Vision is the only body system that continues to develop after birth. Vision involves the way the eyes and brain interact. It takes approximately three years for the eyes to learn how to work together. When they do not, it can result in the eyes turning in (esotropia) or out (exotropia), crossed eyes (strabismus) or lazy eye (amblyopia). To correct these problems, the brain must learn how to use the eyes together.....
It may surprise you to learn eyesight and autism spectrum disorders have a connection.
One of the major symptoms of autism is a lack of eye contact. Few people with autism have trouble with their eyesight. The problem is with the person’s ambient visual system. The ambient system is concerned with things going on around us in the background.
Visual efficiency is more than 20/20 vision, and there is much more to reading problems than dyslexia or ADHD. bout 85 percent of schooling is visual-
It is interesting to note how eyesight has evolved. The vision system used to be more about looking far afield for what could be hunted and eaten – and what could hunt and eat us. These days, people are spending more time with their gazes fixed on their computer or TV screens or cell phones. There are certain physical dynamics to this everyday phenomenon. There is a lens inside the eye that flexes and focuses, so when we look at things up close, that lens has to work extra hard.
Family Eyecare Associates (FEA) in Versailles works with people of all ages and situations, from seniors with balance difficulties to children with learning-
Behavioral optometry starts with the concept that vision is learned. When we’re born, we don’t know how to use our arms, legs and hands. We also don’t know how to use our eyes. We have to learn how to integrate them with the rest of our body. The brain must process what the eyes are seeing, and then it has to integrate that information with the other senses. From a behavioral standpoint, seeing requires a more holistic approach, getting all the senses to work together.
Is your child or grandchild having problems in school? Do you frequently receive notes from his or her teacher about misbehavior or attention problems? It may surprise you to realize the child’s difficulties are the result of vision-
Age takes its toll on all parts of the body, even the eyes. While conditions such as glaucoma are not necessarily inevitable as we get older, they are still possibilities that can change the way we see. It always pay to practice foresight – it just may save your eyesight. Glaucoma is a rather complex disease. Simply put, it occurs when fluid pressure builds up in your eyes. Approximately two and a half quarts of fluid, called aqueous humor, pumps through the eyes every day, providing....
When you were first diagnosed with nearsightedness (myopia), did you resign yourself to wearing eyeglasses for the rest of your life, thinking nothing else could be done to improve your eyesight? Many innovations have been made in the treatment of myopia over the years. Most people are familiar with LASIK or refractive surgery, but a viable alternative you may not have heard of is orthokeratology.
Presbyopia is a natural consequence of aging. In Greek, the word means “old eye.” Presbyopia usually first manifests when you are in your 40s. You may notice it’s getting harder to see things close up, but you can see things that are far away without any problem. You may have to hold reading material at arm’s length because it looks blurry when you try to read at a normal distance. Doing close work may cause headaches or fatigue.
People who suffer from migraines sometimes receive visual clues telling them one of these often-
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disease can be slowed down and the vision you still have can be saved. As with diabetes or high blood pressure, the ultimate goal with glaucoma is maintenance. Here, too, prevention is worth multiple pounds of cure.
FAMILY EYECARE ASSOCIATES
859.879.3665 ¦ www.myfamilyvision.com 105 Crossfield Drive, Versailles, KY, 40383
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GLAUCOMA: DON’T LET ‘SNEAK THIEF’ STEAL YOUR EYESIGHT
until they realize half their vision is gone. That is why glaucoma is called the “sneak thief of sight.” The sooner it is caught, the better able your eye doctor will be to keep it under control.
One of the first signs that you have glaucoma is a loss of peripheral or side vision. Visual field testing can check it. You may also see halos around lights or experience narrow or tunnel vision. Your eye doctor will check for glaucoma by dilating your eyes. This will give him a better view of your optic nerve. The pressure in the eyes often damages this nerve. The doctor will also perform a tonometry test to check the fluid pressure in your eyes. Treatment may include eye drops taken once or twice daily. These drops help relieve the pressure by either increasing the outflow of the aqueous humor or reducing its production. Another option is laser surgery, which can increase the flow of fluid from the eye. One microsurgery procedure is used to create a new channel to help drain the fluid and relieve the pressure in the eye. You should talk about your options with your eye doctor.
Glaucoma is essentially a neurodegenerative disease. It cannot be cured and lost vision can-
DR. RICK GRAEBE
Dr. Graebe received both his B.S degree in Visual Science and Doctorate of Optometry from Indiana University. He is a Behavioral Optometrist and learning expert. He has been in private practice here in the Bluegrass area for the past 32 years.
more articles by dr rick graebe
Age takes its toll on all parts of the body, even the eyes. While conditions such as glaucoma are not necessarily inevitable as we get older, they are still possibilities that can change the way we see. It always pay to practice foresight – it just may save your eyesight.
Glaucoma is a rather complex disease. Simply put, it occurs when fluid pressure builds up in your eyes. Approximately two and a half quarts of fluid, called aqueous humor, pumps through the eyes every day, providing nutrients to the inside of the eyes. This fluid is constantly being pumped in and out of your eyes. The pumping keeps the fluid clear and clean so you can see well through it. The way glaucoma works can be compared to a faucet and drain. As long as both parts are working fine and everything flows smoothly, you have no problem with backups or clogs. But sometimes the fluid gets blocked instead of flowing out of your eyes as normal. The blockage causes the pressure in your eyes, so the balance between inflow and outflow is important. A person can be born with glaucoma, but that only happens rarely. Usually the condition is related to age. Your risk of developing glaucoma rises a percentage point with each decade.
Unfortunately, glaucoma has no warning signals. The condition is painless and the pressure buildup that steals your eyesight is so slow and steady that most people have no idea they even have glaucoma