8 Tips for Keeping your Children's Eyes Healthy

As parents, it is our responsibility to ensure that our children's eyes are healthy. Having the ability to see clearly is important for children's overall development and helps them to discover and learn about their world.

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When problems do arise, early intervention is essential. Most vision issues can be managed with corrective lenses. Correcting children's vision can lead to better school performance and psychological health.

The following are tips for keeping your children's eyes healthy.

1. Eye examinations

Eye examinations are an essential part of ensuring that your child’s vision remains in good health. Most eye specialists recommend that children should have their first eye examination prior to starting school.

2. Healthy well-balanced diet 

Maintaining a healthy diet has a positive impact on general health overall. A healthy diet and lifestyle begin in childhood. Offer a variety of fruits such as oranges, mangoes, and papayas and vegetables especially leafy greens like carrots, kale, and spinach. Also serve fish such as tuna, salmon, mackerel, and halibut. Vitamins found in foods such as eggs, dairy, and nuts have the biggest health benefits for eyes.

Consumption of these foods have been shown to reduce the impact and incidence of eye diseases such as glaucoma, cataracts, and macular degeneration later in life.

3. Be sun smart

While being out in the sun, be particularly cautious to the time of day when the sun's rays are at its strongest. Ensure children wear a broad-brimmed hat and sunglasses. Getting a child used to wearing a broad-brimmed hat and sunglasses early on in life will make it easier for them to tolerate these through those tricky toddler years and into later childhood.

4. Limit screen time

Your children should have limited access to television, computer, or mobile phone. Overindulgence can cause headaches, dry eyes, and uneasiness in the eyes.

5. Wear protective eyewear

School is a great time to get involved in athletics. However, sports can pose a risk of eye injury. Elbows, trips, bumps and little accidents can potentially damage the eyes and inflict long-term damage. Ask your child’s eye doctor to recommend help you choose appropriate protective eyewear.

6. Check their toys

Ensure that your children are playing with age-appropriate toys that are free from sharp edges. Choose toys that encourage visual development such as hanging mobiles, stuffed toys, floating bath toys, building blocks, and puzzles. 

7. Play outside 

Exposing your children’s eyes to the beauty of the outdoors can be beneficial in the development process. Stimulating their eyesight is extremely beneficial for developing eye muscles as well as hand-eye coordination.

8. Practice handwashing

Hands come into contact with germs during the day. Encourage your children not to touch their eyes and to keep hands clean in order to reduce the risk of contracting and spreading an eye infection.

What tips do you have for keeping your children's eyes healthy?