by Nathan Anderson

As students prepare to head back to school, make scheduling an eye exam for school-age kids a priority. Nicholas Onken, OD, recommends that parents schedule a comprehensive eye exam for their children to ensure they do not face any vision-related learning obstacles in the upcoming academic year.

“Vision is an integral part of the school experience,” Onken said. “Making sure there are no visual or ocular obstacles to learning should be near the top of the list of things to check for before school starts.”

Children's eyes change more frequently than adults, and unchecked vision issues like nearsightedness and farsightedness can cause students to underperform in the classroom. Signs that indicate children may need an eye exam include squinting, watery or dry eyes, holding reading material very close and reading with a finger.

Onken warns that children should receive an eye exam even if their vision seems normal as the exam could reveal future vision issues.

“A comprehensive eye examination looks at much more than just visual acuity,” he said. “It evaluates the eye's health for conditions that the child may not currently have but might encounter in the future, such as myopia.”

He also recommends that children have a yearly comprehensive eye exam and not just a screening like those provided in schools.

“A vision screening typically uses a device or a non-eye doctor to look at a few aspects of a child's eyes or vision to see if they are at risk for developing some of the most common pediatric eye problems,” Onken said. “Its purpose is mostly to tell the parent if they need to bring the child to the eye doctor within the next few weeks, or if they are ok waiting until their normal yearly eye examination.”

He also recommends that parents develop healthy habits for their children while adhering to their eye doctor's advice to ensure their children maintain healthy vision throughout the year.

“My advice for parents is to listen to your child's eye doctor and follow their recommendations,” Onken said. “I often recommend lots of outdoor time, developing good screentime habits and eating healthy. Promoting a healthy lifestyle now, while they are little, will provide a lifetime of healthy eyes.”