1 million children could have undetected vision problems, eye health body warns
Katy Morton
Thursday, July 14, 2011
A new campaign to highlight the importance of routine sight tests for young children has been launched by the Optical Confederation.
The organisation, which represents the optical profession, says that poor eyesight can have a significant effect on children’s ability to learn and on their behaviour, but teachers, parents and children themselves often fail to recognise there is a problem.
The children’s eye health campaign 2011 aims to encourage parents to get their children’s eyes tested as part of the ‘back to school’ routine.
According to the Confederation, 1 million children in the UK have an undetected vision problem, which it warns could affect their early learning and development.
Despite this only 52 per cent of children in the UK have ever had a sight test, which are free under the NHS to all children under the age of 16, compared to 90 per cent who visit a dentist regularly.
To help practitioners alert parents to the importance of taking their child to an opticians for an eye test, the Confederation has created a range of resources free to download from the Association of Optometrists’ website.
Karen Sparrow, education adviser at the Association of Optometrists said, ‘We must ensure that children don't lose out on a good education because they can't see properly. Including a sight test in the-back-to-school routine is a great way to make sure that a child’s vision is not forgotten about. Many childhood eye conditions, such as lazy eye and squint, can be treated if they are picked up early as the eye and visual system are actively developing during the school years. If vision problems are identified and treated, it can make a difference that lasts a lifetime.’
Case Study
Grace, now five, wears contact lenses, after her long-sightedness was picked up in a sight test. Her mother says, ‘Grace was two-and-a-half years old when she first had her eyes tested. When we were looking at photos of Grace we noticed that her eyes weren’t looking straight, so we followed it up with the GP who then referred us to a local optometrist. When we came to the optometrist we found out that Grace had a squint and was very long-sighted.’
