Making Regular Visits To The Eye Doctor

What Can Really Hurt Your Eyes?

When it comes to making sure you keep your eyes healthy, you want to make sure you can tell the difference between myths and truths. This way, you know you are following the right advice for eye care and not wasting your time and effort in the wrong areas. Here are some of the things you should know about your eyes and what really can and can't hurt them:

Sitting close to the television won't ruin your eyes

Most people have grown up hearing how they will hurt their eyes if they don't move further away from the TV. While this may have been true many years ago when TVs had tubes in them, this is not the case with the TVs of today. In fact, children can see things closer up better than older people can, as they age they will naturally start to move back from the TV on their own, so there's really no need to worry about moving them to certain locations or distances for TV viewing.

Staring at the sun really can cause eye damage

 While it may sound like an old wive's tale to hear that staring at the sun can injure your eyes, there actually is truth to this. While you may not have to run to the optometrist in a panic if you happen to glance up at the sun, you do definitely want to try avoiding looking directly at it as much as possible. Too much exposure to UV rays can damage your macula, a small part of the retina that's responsible for much of your central detail vision. If not treated properly, this damage can lead to blindness. This is why you should be wearing UV protection sunglasses when outside during the day and always avoid staring at the sun, especially during an eclipse.

Sharing makeup can affect the health of your eyes

No matter how well you know someone, you should never use their eye makeup or let them use yours. One of the most common problems that sharing eye makeup can cause is conjunctivitis, which is also commonly referred to as pink eye. Also, always be sure you have just washed your hands and haven't touched any surfaces if you are going to be touching your eyes for any reason, such as to rub an itch or put in your contact lenses.

The number one way you can hurt your eyes

There is one sure fire way you can increase your chances of developing eye problems and that is to neglect them by not going to the optometrist for regular exams. These exams can catch certain conditions early on, such as developing vision problems and cataracts. The optometrist can help you with issues such as these. They can put you in glasses that correct your vision. There are also procedures that can be done for cataracts and those procedures can go easier if your cataracts have been caught early on.