We often hear a lot of questions and statements about our eye health, but which ones are facts or myths? We’re here to clear up some of those so you’re not blind to the facts!
Will wearing glasses make my vision worse?
No, wearing glasses will not make your vision worse. Glasses made to your prescription are designed to help you see better or to reduce the workload on your eyes, so please wear your glasses as advised by your optical professional!
If you have noticed that you are relying more on your glasses for reading vision (at near), this is not because the glasses have made your eyes worse. This is likely due to natural ageing changes, not the glasses themselves.
Unfortunately, this decline would have occurred regardless of whether you wore your glasses or not. However, wearing the glasses as prescribed actually reduces your symptoms of eye strain so that your eyes do not get worse at a faster rate because of the strain.
Can I train my eyes to see clearer so that I don’t need glasses?
There are exercises, or vision therapy, which exist to help certain binocular vision conditions and eye muscle related conditions (e.g. eye turns).
This means they help the eyes work together better, particularly for near tasks such as reading. However, it does not do anything to improve the clarity of your vision or eliminate the need for glasses (if required).
Since the eye focusing ability relies on the flexibility of our natural lens, rather than the eye muscles, you can’t train them to get stronger.
If I am seeing well, do I still need to get my eyes checked?
Even if you are seeing well, it is still important that you have your eyes checked regularly to ensure it is in good health. This is because there are many eye conditions which may be present, but do not cause symptoms, such as glaucoma. Regular checks will allow for early detection of any issues, and therefore maximise the chance of maintaining your eye health.
If I get laser eye surgery, I won’t need to wear glasses for the rest of my life
Laser eye surgery can greatly reduce your reliance on glasses, but it is not a permanent solution. The procedure corrects your refractive error, the blurry vision that usually affects distance vision. However, laser surgery does not prevent natural age-related changes that occur. Therefore, you may need glasses later in life to help you see in greater detail for either distance, reading tasks or both. Depending on the person, the rate of change varies so some individuals may need spectacles sooner than others after laser eye surgery.
Does staring directly into the sun improve eyesight?
No, staring directly into the sun does not improve your eyesight. In fact, it can lead to solar retinopathy, which can be detrimental to your vision and cause a permanent blind spot in your central line of sight. Please do not sungaze!
