According to data collected by the CDC, about 93 million U.S. adults are at high risk for vision loss. Despite this high statistic, only half of them visited an eye doctor for a check-up in the last year.
Whether you’re having vision troubles or not, routine eye exams are vital to your overall health. This guide will discuss some of the reasons why you should visit your eye doctor and get routine eye exams. Keep reading to learn more.
An Eye Exam Can Detect Eye Disease
Getting a routine vision screening can help your eye doctor determine if you’re developing an eye disease. An eye examination will find early signs of disease even if you aren’t having any symptoms.
Age-related macular degeneration is one kind of eye disease that progresses slowly as you age. This disease can cause blindness and isn’t often detected until it’s in an advanced stage. Symptoms aren’t noticeable at first.
By getting a routine eye exam, your doctor can give you a proper diagnosis and help you find ways to manage symptoms that appear.
An Exam Can Determine the Cause of Your Eye Pain
If you’re struggling with eye pain or dry eye, you might buy over-the-counter medication or drops to help. Sometimes the cause of your pain isn’t related to allergies or irritation, especially if the pain continues for more than a few days.
In this case, you’ll need to go see your eye doctor. Your doctor will do a thorough examination of your eyes and ask you some questions to determine why you might be experiencing these symptoms. They’ll also help you find what can bring you relief.
Your Eye Doctor Can Recommend Healthier Choices
Routine eye exams and visits with your doctor can help you create a healthier lifestyle plan.
Your eye doctor can recommend specific foods that help protect eyesight. They’ll also advise you to protect your eyes from UV light. While smoking is bad for your health in general, cigarette smoke can make certain eye conditions worse.
Your doctor will provide tips to help you manage your symptoms and improve your eye health.
An Eye Exam Can Detect Other Health Problems
One of the most important reasons why you should check your eyes regularly is because routine eye exams can detect other serious health conditions in the early stages.
Your eyes are the windows into the rest of your body. By the time you notice symptoms and see a doctor, you might be in an advanced stage of an illness. This can make it trickier to manage it.
When you get regular eye exams, your doctor will be able to see the development of certain conditions before they’ve reached the point of no return.
Conditions like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, lupus, and leukemia are noticeable through an eye examination. Take charge of your health and schedule your eye exam today. Check out https://aroraeye.com/ for more information.
A Visit to the Eye Doctor Can Help With Digital Eye Strain
Visit the ophthalmologist if you’ve been struggling with digital eye strain. This kind of eye strain is caused by spending too much time in front of a computer screen. With so many people working and completing school work online, it’s easy to develop this kind of strain.
Some common symptoms of digital eye strain include dry eyes or blurry vision. Your ophthalmologist will recommend blue light glasses to help with the strain, but an eye exam will determine if you have a refractive error and need prescription eyeglasses.
Night Blindness Should Lead to a Visit to the Eye Doctor
If you’ve noticed that it’s harder to see while you drive at night, you should consider making an appointment with your eye doctor. After examining your eyes, your doctor might determine you have night blindness.
The proper prescription lenses might improve your vision to make it easier to drive at night. Your doctor might also suggest that you refrain from driving at night to keep you and others safe on the road. This is an important reason to get your eyes checked.
Routine Eye Exams Are Required for Some Chronic Conditions
If you struggle with a chronic condition like diabetes or lupus, you need to get more frequent eye exams to maintain healthy eyes. High blood sugar can damage the blood vessels in your eyes and cause blindness when you’re a diabetic.
Keeping your blood sugar under control and getting your eyes checked will keep your eyes healthy. Certain prescription medications for lupus patients can cause progressive blindness. This is why many lupus patients need to get eye exams every year.
Regular Eye Exams Monitor Vision Progression
As you age, more health problems crop up. Moving becomes harder, and your eyes might not work like they used to.
Regular eye exams will help your doctor monitor the progression of your vision and determine whether it’s deteriorating faster than it should.
You Need Eye Examination Before Certain Procedures
Routine eye exams are also necessary before LASIK procedures. Your eye doctor will let you know if you’re a good candidate for the procedure after doing a thorough examination.
Why You Should Get Routine Eye Exams
This guide describes all the important reasons why you should visit your eye doctor and get regular eye exams. These exams will determine if you have an eye disease or certain health conditions before you experience any symptoms.
Check out some of the other health blogs on our site if you found helpful tips in this one.