When your vision is very blurry or dim, you know that it's time to get an eye exam. Your family doctor may have also recommended you get regular eye exams if you have a condition that could cause vision loss over time, such as circulatory problems.
However, if you think you can see perfectly fine and don't have other such health conditions, you may wonder why you should get regular eye exams? Note a few reasons here, so you do everything possible to ensure your vision is strong, and are protecting your overall health.
Vision
You may think your vision is fine, but your vision can get worse over time; since this often happens gradually, you may not realize that you can't see as clearly as you should. In turn, you may not be safe when you're behind the wheel, as you might miss dangers and hazards in front of you, or may not react and respond as quickly as you should.
Dim vision can also mean that you struggle to focus, so that you get headaches and cause even more damage to your eyes. As you may simply get accustomed to having fuzzy vision, and may not realize that you can't focus as well as you should, it's important to get regular eye exams even if you think you can see fine.
Eye health
You may have developing eye conditions that don't necessarily affect your vision, at least not right away. This can include cataracts, detached retinas, or macular degeneration. Treating these conditions as quickly as possible can help to protect your overall eye health, so that you have a greater chance of actually saving your vision. An optometrist can also note if your eyes seem very dry and irritated, so he or she can recommend drops or another remedy to keep the eyes healthy.
Overall health
When a doctor examines your eyes, he or she can get a very good view of your body's blood vessels. The condition of those blood vessels in your eyes can alert him or her to vascular conditions you may have, meaning conditions of the circulatory system. Damaged blood vessels in the eyes can indicate diabetes or high cholesterol, two very serious health conditions that should be treated as soon as possible. An eye exam can also sometimes detect thyroid disease, hypertension or high blood pressure, and even certain forms of cancer. If your doctor notices any of these symptoms when examining your eyes, he or she can refer you back to your family physician for diagnosis and treatment.
Share18 August 2017
Hello! Welcome to my blog. My name is Karl and today I would like to introduce you to the subject of looking after your eyesight. For many years, I didn't give my eyes much thought. I always thought that my eyes would look after themselves. However, I got older, I noticed that I found it difficult to read signs at a distance and to make out friends faces as they approached me. My wife suggested that I visit an optometrist and have my eyes checked. I was fitted with glasses which have improved my vision. I hope you enjoy my blog.
