Healthy Vision Improves Kids' Learning Abilities

Notebooks, pens and pencils are the usual necessities for school days, but if parents want to give their kids the best shot at a good learning experience, doctors urge parents not to overlook having their kids' eyes examined and updating their prescription lenses.
According to Madeline Romeu, an optometric physician and vision health educator, 80 percent of learning comes through the eyes during a child's first 12 years.
"Good vision is as essential as the ABC's because children who have difficulty with their vision will inevitably have difficulties learning," Romeu said.
New research has revealed that parents should not only be concerned about getting the right prescription, but getting glasses that block UV rays as well.
Eighty percent of exposure to UV rays occurs before age 18. Cumulative UV exposure has been linked to eye diseases that may cause blindness like age-related macular degeneration and cataracts.
Buying glasses that kids will want to wear, however, is part of the struggle for concerned parents. For kids, the choice of frames, lenses and lens enhancements is as important as the proper prescription is to their parents.
"In my recent clinical study, I found that nine out of 10 kids preferred photochromic lenses from Transitions Optical over regular, clear lenses. And more importantly to the kids, more than half of their friends liked the lenses over regular lenses," said Romeu.
Transitions Lenses automatically change from clear indoors to sunglass dark, in bright, glaring light. They block 100 percent of UV rays and greatly reduce sunlight glare to provide the best visual experience for eyeglass wearers.
Transitions Lenses also impressed parents, with 98 percent of them saying they wanted their kids to keep wearing the lenses with the built in UV and glare protection. - NU