It's already August...hard to believe...but that means BACK TO SCHOOL! During this time of year at Twenty20 Vision Center we see about 75% (which is a BIG percentage!) students, teachers and administrators getting geared up for the school year. When I see parents with their children at this time, a common question I get is "When should my child have their first eye exam"? GREAT QUESTION! According to the American Optometry Association (AOA) "infants should have their first comprehensive eye exam at 6 months of age. Children then should have additional eye exams at age 3, and just before they enter the first grade — at about age 5 or 6." The AOA even has a program called InfantSEE®, a public health program designed to ensure that eye and vision care becomes an essential part of infant wellness care to improve a child's quality of life. Under this program, participating optometrists provide a comprehensive infant eye assessment between 6 and 12 months of age as a no-cost public service. If you have already passed these age milestones in your child's life, my rule of thumb is to at the very least have their first eye exam before they start school. We want to make sure that your child's eyes are ready to start learning, reading and doing regular classroom activities. We want to make sure that your child's eyes are not limiting how well he or she does in school. We want to make sure that in a world where we are expecting A LOT out of our 4/5/6 year-olds, they are not starting out with a handicap that no one is even aware of. Dr. Nat and myself have schedules that are filling up fast, so if you are trying to get you or your children in before school starts now is the time to give us a call. I will also attach a couple of helpful links below to learn more about what I just spoke about.
http://www.infantsee.org/
https://www.allaboutvision.com/