Children’s Eye Exams | Chatham

Children’s Eyes Need Special Attention

Watching your child play, learn, and grow, you can see how much of their experiences are gained through vision. From sounding out their first words to playing catch with their friends, healthy eyes play a significant role in how your child engages with the world.

At Dr. David Oliphant Optometry, we’re devoted to caring for all our patients’ eyes, including the littlest ones. We provide complete eye health exams for children of all ages. We can help you protect their eye health and support their growing vision needs.

Call us today to book an appointment.

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Learning & Vision Are Linked

Eyesight plays an essential role in your child’s overall development. It involves various visual skills, such as depth perception and eye movement control, which are crucial for reading, catching, and recognizing visual cues.

Roughly 80% of everything your child learns is gained through visual learning. These skills develop in early childhood and play a key role in understanding and interacting with the world.

Common Signs of Vision Problems

Because children’s eyes are constantly changing, they may not be aware when they develop a vision problem. Instead, they may simply believe they see the same way everyone else does and try to adjust to how their eyes work. Parents and guardians can help their children by watching for signs of an eye condition between eye appointments.

These signs can include:

Crossed or wandering (lazy) eyes
Complaints of frequent headaches
Red or watering eyes
Covering or closing one eye
Frequent squinting, blinking, or eye rubbing
Lack of interest in books, TV, or other close-up activities
Sitting too close to the TV or board at school
Omitting or confusing words while reading

How Often Do Children Need Eye Exams?

The Canadian Association of Optometrists recommends that children have eye exams in coordination with their major visual milestones.

During every eye exam, we check your child’s overall eye health, measure their visual acuity, and test their visual skills to support their development. We also look for signs of common childhood vision problems that may need treatment.

We may recommend more frequent eye exams if we identify a concern, such as nearsightedness (myopia). Our goal is to support your child’s visual development.

Children should have their first eye exam between 6 and 9 months. Babies aren’t born with perfect eyesight. Their eyes start to develop within the first few months of birth, and they slowly learn how to use their eyes as they gain muscle control and develop hand-eye coordination.

Strabismus (crossed eyes) or amblyopia (lazy eye) can also develop at this age—2 conditions that are easier to treat when caught early.

Children between 2 and 5 years old should have at least one eye exam before they start school. These years are incredibly formative for your child since their overall development is closely tied to their eyes.

An eye exam before your child starts school can help support your child’s success, evaluating if their eyes are developing properly and assessing for any undiagnosed vision problems that can impact their learning.

Once your child is in school, they should have an eye exam every year until they turn 19. As your child progresses through their grades, they rely more on their eyes as their work becomes more visually demanding.

Annual eye exams allow us to detect and diagnose common refractive errors that need corrective eyewear and diagnose potential eye diseases that can lead to vision loss.

Start Caring for Your Child’s Eye Health Early: Visit Us Today

Regular eye exams help us identify, manage, and treat vision concerns early, giving your child timely support.

At Dr. David Oliphant Optometry, we aim to build a strong relationship with our littlest patients by creating a safe, inviting environment that fosters comfort and trust. Schedule an appointment for your child today, and let us help teach them how to achieve happy, healthy eyes for life.

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