Our eyes get a daily workout from everyday life, so it’s important to practice routine care for them. And whether it’s to prevent common eye conditions or provide treatment for existing conditions, taking care of our eyes is imperative. 

In this article, we will discuss the most common eye conditions, how to take care of your eyes, and when to schedule an appointment, so that you can maintain good vision and good health

Common Eye Conditions

Most adults experience eye conditions at some point in their lives, and these conditions can range from minor problems such as dry eyes to severe eye problems requiring surgery. 

But among the most common conditions, the CDC outlines the following:

• Age-Related Macular Degeneration: An eye disorder associated with aging and the damage of central and sharp vision. Central vision helps people see objects clearly and common tasks. 
• Cataract: The clouding of the eye’s lens and is the leading cause of blindness worldwide and the leading cause of vision loss in America. 
• Diabetic Retinopathy: A complication of diabetes that is the leading cause of blindness in America. 
• Glaucoma: Damage to the optic nerve that can result in vision loss and blindness. 

These eye disorders have their own symptoms, which patients may notice or may not notice. In most cases, vision problems can be detected at an eye exam, which can promote the ophthalmologist to conduct further testing. 

Precautions can be taken to help reduce the risk of eye conditions developing. These precautions luckily can start at home. 

Eye Care Tips At Home 

Thankfully, there are some great steps that you can take at home, and when performed daily, these habits can help prevent eye diseases. 

MedlinePlus has some recommendations to help protect the eyes at home in simple but effective ways. 

• Maintaining a healthy diet
• Wearing sunglasses
• Avoiding smoke
• Being informed about family’s medical history
• Resting your eyes
• Maintaining a healthy weight 

Eating a healthy diet and maintaining a healthy weight affect not only the eyes, but also the entire body. In fact, if just one part of the body is neglected, health complications can develop that will affect the whole body. Routine appointments can prevent these complications from arising. 

Visiting the doctor every year is an excellent way to ensure that the eyes stay healthy as time goes on. 

When To See A Doctor 

To help observe the health of the eyes, regular visits to the doctor can help spot early signs of eye diseases. Therefore, the frequency of visits to the eye care professional is mainly based on age.

WebMD has a set of recommendations based on age about how often patients should visit the eye doctor. These recommendations are the standard and the frequency of appointments can be different for people. 

• Children and young adults in their 20s and 30s who wear glasses or contacts or have vision problems are advised to go every year. 
• Adults at age 40 are recommended to have regular follow-ups depending on the general health and the opinion of the eye care professional.
• For adults 65 and older, it is generally recommended to visit every 1-2 years.

Regular eye exams are important as they can help monitor the health of the eyes. After each exam, the results of the tests are recorded, which can allow the doctor to check for any decline in vision.  

If there are any new problems such as sudden vision loss, please schedule an appointment with an eye care professional.

How We Can Help 

Our optometrists can treat a vast range of ocular disorders and diseases by providing quality care while building a relationship patients can count on. 

If you are interested in a team of eye care professionals that are passionate about their work, schedule an appointment with us.