SKW ENG V09

HEALTH & WELL-BEING
Signs Your Child Needs To
See An Eye Doctor
Most young children don’t take too easily
to the idea of wearing glasses, but still,
it’s important as a parent to book an
appointment with the eye doctor if your
child is displaying a majority of these clues:
• Habit of rubbing his or her eyes
• Sensitive to sunlight
• Short attention span
• Poor visual tracking of any object
• Chronic redness of the eyes
• Chronic tearing of the eyes not caused
by crying
• Whitish pupil (instead of black)
Other signs of eye-related problems in
school-age children include difficulty in
looking at far-distance objects, squinting
and a habit of sitting right at the front of the
television to watch their favorite programs.
Eye Specialists Explained
Does your child need to be seen by an
optician or an ophthalmologist? Eye
doctors vary according to their credentials,
skills and specialties. Here are the main
categories of eye care professionals that
you should know about:
• Ophthalmologists are medical
doctors specializing in eye care.
Ophthalmologists can perform eye
examinations, prescribe eye corrections,
treat injuries or diseases and perform
eye surgery.
• Pediatric ophthalmologists are
professionally certified ophthalmologists
with additional training specializing in
the treatment of kids’ eye problems.
• Optometrists are doctors of optometry
with an undergraduate degree. They are
authorized to perform comprehensive
eye exams, diagnose common eye vision
problems as well as provide pre- and
post-surgical care. Besides prescribing
glasses, contact lenses, recommending
eye exercises, vision aids and eye
therapy, optometrists can also offer
oral and topical medications for certain
eye diseases.
• Opticians are technicians that are
trained to read vision-correction
prescriptions and supply you with the
appropriate contact lens or glasses.
Opticians can also help to repair and
adjust eyeglasses for better wear.
SmartKids World Vol. 09 163