Don’t Believe These Myths About Eyes!

We all want to take the best care of our eyes, however, there are mistakes we make unknowingly because of certain misconceptions that have blinded our vision. It is time to clear your eyes and vision of these myths.

Also, for any eye-related issue or advice, always seek professional help. Always double-check with an eye care professional to guide you.

To help you steer clear of these misconceptions, DeSouza Optometry has debunked some of the most widely believed myths about eyes.

Myth 1: Wearing prescription glasses makes your eye-sight worse
This is false, as new, correctly prescribed eyeglasses do not worsen your vision. They raise your standards for what “clear vision” is, though. After seeing something in true 20/20 vision, the worse vision looks much more blurry. Just like when we use our old phones after getting the newest iPhone, the old phone seems slower and more glitchy, and the pictures look blurry. The phone has not changed, but your standards for what a phone can do have.

Myth 2: If someone has no problems seeing things, their vision is perfect
Believing that you do not have any problems seeing things is subjective and varies from person to person. It does not necessarily mean that you have perfect or 20/20 vision. At your yearly eye exam, the optometrist will be able to test your vision and obtain your objective visual acuity. In addition, good vision ranges far beyond visual acuity (or central vision clarity). Depth perception, peripheral vision, ability to track moving objects, contrast sensitivity, color vision and much more contribute to our ability to see the world around us.

Myth 3: The more one uses their eyes, the worse their vision will get
This myth is a bit more complicated than others. In children and teenagers, the amount of work they do up close can cause their eyeballs to grow longer and, therefore, could change their prescription. Particularly, young patients who are near-sighted (myopic) are at risk of having their prescriptions become worse with extended up-close work. Frequent breaks, a correct glasses prescription and potential myopia control measures are important in this case. For adults, the eyeball stops growing, and the glasses prescription is not affected by how much near-work we are doing. Any changes to the adult prescription are primarily due to changes to the cornea and lens (cataract). Overworking our eyes can cause frustrating symptoms such as eye strain, dry eyes and headaches. As a result, getting an eye exam to diagnose the reason for any symptoms properly is important.

If you’re looking to steer clear of these myths, reach out to DeSouza Optometry, an eye care clinic in North York, Toronto.

We offer comprehensive eye and contact lens exams, eye disease treatment, lens fitting, eye care products, and more! We have clients visiting us from North York, Etobicoke, Scarborough, Toronto, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, Markham, Thornhill, and the Greater Toronto Area.

For a complete list of our services, please click here. If you have any questions about DeSouza Optometry, we’d love to hear from you. For more information, please call us at (416) 494-3050 or email us at info@desouzaoptometry.com.