Nearsightedness is growing Myopia is growing alarmingly worldwide, especially in East Asian populations. There are estimates that by 2050, half the world’s population will be nearsighted. However, there’s some promising news in sight, at least for children. Effective interventions for myopia management and reduction have appeared in the form of MiyoSmart glasses. MiyoSmart glasses can potentially curb your child’s myopia progression by an average of 60% and are now available in New Zealand from John O’Connor Optometrists. How do MiYOSMART lenses work? Very basically, in a normal eye light entering the eye from straight ahead focuses perfectly on retina, so
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Archives for myopia
Eyesight myths debunked
According to the New York Times article, The Age of Misinformation, “we are in an era of endemic misinformation” and that “sharing and believing misinformation is on the rise.” Sometimes, we hear information repeated so often we accept it as truth. When it comes to eyesight myths and your eye health though, you can’t afford to take every rumour at face value. So, next time you hear someone say they’re going to eat carrots so that they won’t need glasses, or that wearing glasses makes your eyesight worse over time, you can feel confident that by smiling and walking away
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Children’s vision changes after lockdown
Eye doctors had planned to celebrate 2020 as the year of vision (as in seeing 20/20). Instead, thanks to Covid-19, it will be known as the year that worsened the world’s vision for decades to come. Some optometrists across New Zealand are noticing a spike in children’s vision problems as we emerge from COVID-19 lockdowns. We are seeing even more new cases of nearsightedness, or myopia in children recently, and as has also been reported internationally, some children who were already nearsighted now seem to experience worsening vision at a faster-than-expected rate. Distance learning up close and personal When schools
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Covid lockdowns and myopia in children
Children’s reliance on screens during lockdown makes the battle for digital-free time even tougher Covid-19 certainly doesn’t seem to have helped the running argument in many NZ households: children demanding more screen time, parents wanting less. And it seems parents are right again: studies have drawn a link between lockdowns and childhood myopia. A study from the Chinese University of Hong Kong found the eyesight of some children who were already near-sighted worsened more quickly than expected during lockdowns, while other children developed myopia at a greater rate than optometrists had seen prior to 2020 and Covid-19 changing our worlds.
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MiYOSMART lenses for controlling short sightedness
DIMS lenses appear to help nearsighted kids Launched in mid-2018, MiYOSMART lenses developed in cooperation with The Hong Kong Polytechnic University can slow and even stop the progression of myopia in children. Results of a three-year study show the MiYOSMART lens with patented Defocus Incorporated Multiple Segments (D.I.M.S.) can slow and in some cases halt myopia progression. The original two-year, double-blind, randomised clinical trial found MiYOSMART lenses were found to reduce the progression of myopia for 60 percent of the young participants. In addition, the new lenses completely stopped further vision loss in 21 percent of trial participants. The recently
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Myopia control for children – Hoya MiyoSmart lenses
MiyoSmart® is a new non-invasive myopia management solution for children of all ages. Now available in New Zealand from John O’Connor Optometrists, MiyoSmart lenses can potentially curb your child’s myopia progression by an average of 60%. What is myopia? Myopia, or shortsightedness happens when the eye grows too long. Very simply put, if the eye is too long, the lens of the eye focuses the image in front of the retina instead of on top of it. People with myopia see things that are up close clearly, whereas far objects are blurry. Myopia causes eyestrain, which can lead to headaches and
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Myopia in children
What is myopia? Myopia is blurry long-distance vision, often called short-sightedness or near-sightedness. A person with myopia can see clearly up close – when reading a book or looking at a phone – but words and objects look fuzzy on a blackboard, on television or when driving. Experts across the globe have concluded, with good evidence, that myopia leads to further sight-threatening conditions. Myopia is spreading Research published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology showed 10 million people worldwide suffered from myopia in 2010. By 2050, it is estimated that more than 50% of the world’s population will have myopia,
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Keratoconus: causes and treatment options
Keratoconus – Progressive thinning and distortion of the cornea Keratoconus is an eye disease of the cornea: the thin, clear tissue covering the surface of the front of the eye. A normal, healthy cornea is round in shape, but sometimes the cornea can weaken, losing its shape. Instead of a dome, it becomes cone-shaped, preventing clear vision. This is known as keratoconus. It is a progressive disorder that can either progress rapidly or take years to develop. It may affect only one eye but more commonly occurs in both. Causes of Keratoconus The cause of keratoconus is unknown. It is
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What are occupational glasses?
Feeling tired by the end of the work day? Spend a lot of time in front of a computer screen? Been a few years since your 21st birthday party? By the end of the day, many of us young folk over 40 can have difficulty seeing the words clearly on the computer screen, even with reading glasses. Eyes can become irritated, feel heavy and we can suffer blurred vision. Why? Basically, the optical correction for presbyopia (from the Greek meaning “trying to see as old men do”) or short arm syndrome is not designed for reading at near to intermediate distances: computer
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Keratoconus Subsidy – Need Help?
If you suffer from keratoconus, there is financial help available. What is keratoconus? Keratoconus: progressive thinning and distortion of the cornea causing reduced vision. The cornea is the window of the eye. Light travels through the cornea past the lens to the retina and then the brain to form a visual image. A normal, healthy cornea holds its round shape. However, sometimes the cornea becomes structurally weakened and loses its shape. Instead of a dome, the cornea becomes cone shaped and the surface irregular. This prevents the light entering your eye from being focused correctly on the retina, so a
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