eye care

6 Tips for Having Healthy Eyes & Contact Lenses

Your eyes do so much for you every day, show your love and appreciation by taking care of them! When you wear contact lenses, caring for them properly will help keep your eyes and your vision in top shape. However, if you don’t practice correct hygiene and handling with your contacts, you increase your odds of getting a serious eye infection and put your sight at risk.

Read the following contact lenses health tips from our friendly, knowledgeable eye doctor near you to ensure that you give your eyes the attention they deserve:

1. Keep your contacts away from water

Yes, that includes showering, swimming, and rinsing or storing your contact lenses in water. Although water may look clean and sparkling, it’s actually teeming with dangerous germs that can transfer into your cornea and lead to a sight-threatening eye infection. In particular, water-borne bacteria can cause acanthamoeba keratitis, a rare eye infection that can lead to blindness.

Recently, a woman in England was diagnosed with acanthamoeba keratitis after showering and swimming in her contact lenses. An article published in the New England Journal of Medicine, in July 2019, reported how the woman wore monthly disposable soft contact lenses and began to experience painful, blurry vision and light sensitivity in one eye. After two months of these disturbing symptoms, she booked an appointment with her eye doctor.

At her eye exam, it was discovered that her vision in her left eye was only 20/200. By taking a corneal scraping and inserting dye into her eye, her eye doctor was able to confirm a diagnosis of acanthamoeba keratitis. She was treated with antimicrobial eye drops, and the infection cleared up. However, her vision loss remained due to a corneal scar and a cataract that had developed. About a year later, she had eye surgery that was able to relieve all pain and restore her vision to 20/80.

Why is the risk of acanthamoeba keratitis higher for contact lenses wearers?

This uncommon, aggressive eye infection affects only one to two million contact lenses wearers in the United States per year. It shows up more frequently in people who wear contacts because the lenses absorb water and anything contained in that water. As contacts rest directly on top of your eye, they provide a clear path to your cornea. Acanthamoeba keratitis must be treated immediately, because it can damage vision quickly.

To protect against all types of eye infection, our eye doctor near you recommends never coming into contact with water while you are wearing contact lenses!

2. Treat your contact lenses to fresh solution every time you clean or store them.

Never top up used solution with additional new solution to make the bottle last longer! Doing this reduces the cleaning power of your disinfectant, leaving your contact lenses susceptible to bacteria.

3. Don’t sleep with contact lenses, unless your eye doctor lets you

Sleeping with contacts is contraindicated, unless your eye doctor instructs you that your type of contacts is suitable for overnight wear. Many scientific studies have shown that wearing lenses while sleeping raises the risk of eye infection six to eight times higher!

4. Clean your contacts by rubbing them

According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, not only should you clean your hands well before touching your contact lenses, but you should also take care to rub your contacts. Rubbing your lenses helps to loosen any bacteria build-up, and studies show it’s a very effective way to reduce your chances of getting an eye infection.

5. Throw out your contact lenses on time

Only wear your lenses for the duration of time that your eye doctor recommends. For example, if you have monthly contact lenses – don’t continue to wear them after 30 days have passed.

All of the above tips from our eye doctor near you will optimize the health of your eyes as you enjoy the clarity and comfort of wearing contact lenses!

Is School Work Causing Computer Vision Syndrome in Your Child?

Eye health tips for students from our Morrisville eye doctor

The start of fall means back-to-school for kids of all ages – and our team at Triangle Family Eye Care wishes everyone a smooth and successful return to the classroom!

When your child enters school after a summer of outdoor fun, many of the summer’s vision hazards are left behind. Yet, that doesn’t mean all eye health risks are eliminated! Nowadays, the majority of learning is computer based – exposing students’ eyes to the pain and dangers of blue light and computer vision syndrome. Fortunately, a variety of helpful devices and smartphone apps are available to block blue light and keep your child’s vision safe and comfortable.

To help you safeguard your child’s vision for the upcoming semesters and the long term of life, our Morrisville optometrist explains all about computer vision syndrome and how to prevent it.

Symptoms of computer vision syndrome

It’s smart to familiarize yourself with the signs of computer vision syndrome. If your child complains about any of these common symptoms, you can help prevent any lasting vision damage by booking an eye exam with our Morrisville eye doctor near you:

Eye irritation and redness
Neck, shoulder and back pain
Blurry vision
Dry eyes, due to reduced blinking
Headaches

Basics of blue light

Students spend endless hours in front of digital screens, be it a computer monitor, tablet, or smartphone. There is homework to be done, research to be conducted, texting with friends, and movies and gaming during downtime. All of this screen time exposes your child’s eyes to blue light.

Many research studies have demonstrated that flickering blue light – the shortest, highest-energy wavelength of visible light – can lead to tired eyes, headaches, and blurry vision. Additionally, blue light can disrupt the sleep/wake cycle, causing sleep deprivation and all the physical and mental health problems associated with it. As for your child’s future eye health, blue light may also be linked to the later development of macular degeneration and retinal damage.

How to avoid computer vision syndrome

Our Morrisville eye doctor shares the following ways to block blue light and protect against computer vision syndrome:

Computer glasses, eyeglasses lenses treated with a blue-light blocking coating, and contact lenses with built-in blue light protection are all effective ways to optimize visual comfort when working in front of a screen. These optics reduce eye strain and prevent hazardous blue-light radiation from entering the eyes.
Practice the 20-20-20 rule; pause every 20 minutes to gaze at an object that’s 20 feet away for 20 seconds. This simple behavior gives eyes a chance to rest from the intensity of the computer or smartphone screen, preventing eye fatigue.
Prescription glasses can be helpful when using a computer for long periods – even for students who don’t generally need prescription eyewear. A weak prescription can take the stress off of your child’s eyes, decreasing fatigue and increasing their ability to concentrate. Our Morrisville optometrist will perform a personalized eye exam to determine the most suitable prescription.
Moisturize vision with eye drops. One of the most common symptoms of computer vision syndrome is dry eyes, namely because people forget to blink frequently enough. Equip your child with a bottle of preservative-free artificial tears eye drops (available over the counter) and remind them to blink!
Blue light filters can be installed on a computer, smartphone, and all digital screens to minimize exposure to blue. A range of helpful free apps are also available for download.
Limit screen time for your child each day, or encourage breaks at least once an hour. Typically, the degree of discomfort from computer vision syndrome is in direct proportion with the amount of time your child spends viewing digital screens.
Set the proper screen distance. Younger children (elementary school) should view their computer at a half-arm’s length away from their eyes, just below eye level. Kids in middle school and high school should sit about 20 – 28 inches from the screen, with the top of the screen at eye level.

For additional info, book a consultation and eye exam at Triangle Family Eye Care

When you and your child meet with our Morrisville eye doctor, we’ll ask questions about your child’s school and study habits to provide customized recommendations on the most effective ways to stay safe from computer vision syndrome and blue light. Our optometrist stays up-to-date with the latest optic technologies and methods to prevent painful vision and eye health damage from using a computer, so you can depend on us for contemporary, progressive treatment.

Get Some Fresh Air! Go Outside to Boost Your Body & Eye Health

Scientific studies abound with support for the timeless wisdom of moms everywhere! Spending more time outdoors is good for kids. It keeps their bodies in good shape, protects against obesity and a variety of diseases, sharpens distance vision, and reduces their chances of myopia (nearsightedness). Are you a skeptic that sending your kids outside to play really packs so much power? Our Morrisville eye doctor explains the benefits of the great outdoors:

Indoor children are at risk

In the past twenty years, childhood has taken a cushy seat indoors. The average kid in America now spends as little as a half-hour a day playing outside daily – and more than seven hours per day gazing at a digital screen! What does all this time indoors on the couch mean for kids’ health? The effects are obvious:

Rates of childhood obesity have more than doubled
The US is now the largest consumer of ADHD medications worldwide
Many children are suffering the effects of not enough sleep
Pediatricians are prescribing more antidepressants than ever
Myopia is reaching epidemic proportions

Since when is sun exposure a good thing?

In moderation and with appropriate protection for skin and eyes, exposure to the sun can be a good thing. Bodies need access to the sun to make vitamin D, which is key for many biological processes, such as strengthening your immune system and bone development.

In addition, spending time outdoors can help your kids get a good night’s sleep. Contemporary children tend to suffer from sleep deprivation, likely due to the way they fill their downtime with electronic gadgets and television. Spending time outside can promote a deeper sleep for children by keeping them more alert during the day, lifting their moods, and helping to set their biological clocks in a better wake-sleep cycle.

As you send your kids to the park, remember the advice of your Morrisville optometrist: slather your kids with sunscreen to safeguard their skin and make sure they wear sunglasses with 100% UV protection to protect their vision. And don’t worry – sunglasses don’t block the benefits of sunlight.

Connection between sun and vision

The results of a large study conducted jointly by the USC Eye Institute and the NIH show that the rate of myopia among kids in America has more than doubled in the past 50 years! Even more dramatic are the statistics in Asia, where at least 90% of the population has been diagnosed with myopia, in contrast to only 10-20% 60 years ago. Why is this happening? Take a guess…. Yep! One primary reason is because kids are spending less time outdoors.

When kids stay inside watching television, swiping their phones, or clicking on their tablet, it stresses their eyes. They are only focusing on near objects, often in dim lighting with poor visual contrast and glare – all of which strain their eyes. Outdoors, children also relax their eye muscles by gazing into the distance.

Recent research explored the amount of time children spend outside in relation to nearsightedness. The study demonstrated that more time outside had a preventive effect for the onset of myopia. And if a child is already nearsighted, spending time outside can slow the progression of myopia.

Want to understand more about the science of eyes and vision? When kids play outside, they are exposed to UVB rays, which triggers the release of dopamine in the retina and circulates vitamin D in the body. Altogether, these processes help to protect their eyes against myopia. Natural light also appears to slow the axial growth of the eye, and it is precisely this type of growth that contributes to nearsightedness.

Balance indoor and outdoor time for kids

A healthy balance of spending time in the fresh air and staying safe from overexposure to the sun’s harmful rays is the rule to follow! Our Morrisville eye doctor encourages parents to set limits on screen time for kids, and to remember that kids learn by example. You can make outdoor time into a family event by playing sports, going to the park, gardening, or even strolling around the block together (with your sunglasses on, of course!).