Sponsored by CIBAVision
Does your
child need an
eye exam?
In a word, yes. School vision
screenings, or even the quick checks
at the pediatrician’s office, are not
intended to be a substitute for a full
vision exam. Generally, such screenings
catch only the squinters—the children
who can’t see the blackboard from the
back of the room. While that’s great, it’s
not enough.
About one-third of the population
has myopia, or distance-vision problems. If your child complains about not
being able to see the board or can’t
identify objects in the distance well,
schedule an eye exam.
But another one-fourth of the
population has near-vision problems—
and many cases go undetected. In fact,
near-vision problems are sometimes
diagnosed as behavior problems.
Symptoms might include difficulty
concentrating on seat work at school,
difficulty or impatience with reading
and headaches after reading.
Some children also have accommodative problems, meaning their eyes
don’t adjust as quickly when switching
focus back and forth between near
work and distance work. Many of these
problems become more noticeable as
children move to higher grades, away
from picture books with big print.—MB
What’s new with
contact lenses
By Marjolijn Bijlefeld
REMEMBER WHAT your first computer was capable of doing? Probably not
much, at least compared to what most office and home computers today can do.
Similar kinds of changes have taken place in contact-lens technology in
the past decade—even if they’re not obvious to the casual observer. Yet the
advances in materials make the contact lenses of even a few years ago as
obsolete as that old clunker computer still sitting on a shelf in the garage.
The point is, if you haven’t talked with your eye doctor in the past two
years about what’s new in contact lenses, you’re in for some surprises. Your
independent doctor of optometry, located in or near your Costco Optical
Department, can not only examine, diagnose and treat vision conditions, but
also recommend the best contact-lens option for you. In many cases, you can
leave the office with a trial pair of lenses.
Here’s a look at the new contact-lens technologies that are giving people
more choices than ever.
Single-wear lenses
For those people who like to wear contact lenses only on special occasions or for sports, there are single-day lenses designed to be worn for a day
and then thrown away.
These lenses are also an excellent option for teens and children, providing
parents a worry-free way of making sure their children are wearing clean
