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It’s not an overstatement to say that the first five years of a child’s life are fundamentally important. They are the bedrock that shapes a child’s future health, development, happiness, achievements, and growth.
When it comes to the formative years of early childhood, most parents focus on the development of their kids’ brain. They offer their children love and protection to develop a sense of trust and security and help them grow into confident adults. However, most parents neglect one crucial aspect that can have a major impact on children’s personality and habits: their eyesight.
The development of your kid’s vision begins before birth, and it changes rapidly through the first years of childhood. Unfortunately, as your child’s vision refines, some problems may occur. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, around one in 20 preschoolers have an eye problem that, if left untreated, could result in permanent vision loss. Fortunately, most eye problems can be fixed if they are detected at an early stage and treated correctly.
After all, they are our favorite type of patients.
1. Regular Check-Ups
One of the best ways to care for your child’s eyesight it to have their vision examined regularly beginning at the age of three. Your eye doctor can detect refractive errors, such as astigmatism, farsightedness, or nearsightedness in their early stages. He/She can also detect and treat some of the following diseases:
- Strabismus
- Amblyopia (lazy eye)
- Color blindness
- Ptosis (drooping of the eyelid)
Your toddler can’t express what’s bothering him/her, so it’s your duty as a parent to be vigilant and identify problems early on. There are various warning signs that can indicate that your kid has a vision problem, so it’s important to keep an open eye for them. Some of these signs include:
- A family history of vision problems;
- Disregard to looking at distant objects or reading;
- Wandering eyes;
- Squinting their eyes while watching TV.
2. Provide Toys that Enhance Visual Development
Give your kids toys that help improve their visual perception skills, such as Legos, multisensory magnet tabs, or a Rubik’s cube. Play games that encourage their visual development, such as Acuity, I Spy, and so on. Avoid giving your kids, toys with sharp edges that might hurt their eyes.
