Experts say that 80 percent of a child’s learning before age 13 is visual. Milestones like walking, reading, and identifying colors depend on vision. This information underscores the need for eye exams.

 

Children’s eye exams provide expert assessments of their eye health. They also get a vision screening to determine if they can see images. However, vision screening or a brief check of your child’s eyes does not replace the need for an eye exam.

 

The First Eye Exam

You need to take your child for their first eye exam between six and twelve months. Eye exams are crucial to ensuring that your child’s eyes are healthy. They also determine whether your child has any vision problems. Healthy eyes and vision are vital to your child’s successful development.

 

What to Expect

The doctor will check your child’s vision at twelve months or less. They will test whether the child has nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism, or amblyopia. If the doctor suspects any problems, they will refer you to a pediatric eye doctor. An early diagnosis of any eye problems will help with effective treatment.

 

Importance of Child Eye Exams

Vision problems and other eye conditions can interfere with your child’s development and school performance. It can also potentially affect your child’s safety. Thus, you must take your child to their first eye exam at six months old. It will help you catch any problems they may have early and start treatment.

 

Developmental Milestones

Children need to develop their visual skills for optimal learning. Therefore, there is a need to take them for eye exams early. These crucial skills include eye movement, visual acuity at all distances, and accurate eye teaming skills. All these work together to improve your child’s ability to learn.

 

Birth to Four Months

At birth, babies deal with all kinds of visual stimulation. They may look intently at an object, but they cannot tell between two items. Their eyes slowly start working together as they grow, and their vision rapidly improves. They develop eye-hand coordination and begin following moving objects with their eyes. At three to four months, the child can reach out for things and hold them.

 

Five to Eight Months

There is an improvement in their eye movements and body coordination. They develop their visual acuity and can now tell whether an object is near or far. At five months, they can see the world in a three-dimensional view. They gain depth perception and can approximate distances.

 

Nine to Twelve Months

At this age, most babies are crawling and trying to walk. The activity helps them develop their eye-hand coordination. Parents should encourage their children to crawl more than walk. It is because children who crawl develop better eye-hand coordination. They can judge distances well and throw things with precision.

 

Their eyes also start perceiving color. They can tell differences in objects by their colors. By this time, they fully develop their eye movement skills. They also have accurate eye teaming skills. These are the reasons why you need to take your child for the first eye exam between six months and one year old. It will ensure they do not miss these developmental milestones.


 

For more information on when your child should have their first eye exam, contact Dry Eye Center of Alabama and Family Eye Care at our office in Homewood, Alabama. You can call (205) 490-2322 to book an appointment today.