Children’s eyesight

At birth all eyes are ¾ of the size of adults eyes. The muscles and focusing ability develop gradually over the first year however most people are unaware that the eyes are not fully developed until the age of 8 yrs. It is therefore important to have your children’s eyes regularly checked by an optician to ensure the eyes are developing accordingly.

Many eyesight defects such as long-sight, short-sight, squints, astigmatism etc all are inherited. Therefore it is essential to have children’s eyes checked if these run in your family. Many squints or problems are unnoticeable and can only be detected with a thorough eye examination.

If left uncorrected for too long, some defects cannot be rectified. Defects detected early may result in less dependence on spectacles later in life and may prevent your child from having difficulties with schoolwork.

Many parents believe that the ‘eye test’ carried out at school by the nurse is sufficient however they only check the vision and cannot detect any ocular health problems or defects such as squints. A comprehensive examination as carried out by an optician will examine for all theses conditions and ensure your child’s development is on track.

All children are entitled to a FREE NHS eye examination and at Smart-spex.com all childrens spectacles are FREE. We have a wide selection of childrens frames including the popular BARBIE, BATMAN and SUPERMAN frames.