Free Eye Exam For Your Baby

Did you know that you can get a free eye exam for your baby? Most parents don't. The American Optometric Association (AOA) through its InfantSEE® program provides a free exam to parents of a child up to one year of age regardless of income or insurance.

According to the AOA only 13% of mothers had taken their child under 2 years of age to an eye care professional. Many potential disorders, vision or otherwise are detected within the first year of life. You take your child to the pediatrician many times in the first year and they charge you for that, why not get your child's eyes checked for free!

Common Detectable Vision Problems

Nearsightedness (Myopia) - The eyes are focused for near objects and far away objects appear blurry. Myopia often happens as a child ages but can be present within the first year.

Farsightedness (Hyperopia) - The eyes are focused for distant objects but cannot focus up close. This poses more of a problem for a developing child because all of the important things in a baby's world are close-up. Their mother's face, toys, and food all require good near vision. Farsightedness is more likely to lead to lazy eye (amblyopia) if not corrected in a child.

Eye Turn (Strabismus) - The two eyes are not aligned correctly to focus on an object. The turn can range from hardly noticeable to very pronounced. Sometimes the eye muscles can compensate for the eye turn for most of the day but when the child becomes tired it becomes obvious. Untreated Strabismus can lead to Amblyopia (lazy eye) and problems with depth perception.

Lazy Eye (Amblyopia) - Is a loss of functional vision in an otherwise health eye. The eye is deprived of good quality vision during the developing years whether due to an eye turn or a refractive error. This can lead to the brain "shutting off" information from the problem eye and causing problems with depth perception, side vision, and difficulty reading and learning.

If your child was born premature it is especially important to get them to an Optometrist. If a baby received oxygen treatment while they were in the hospital it can damage the developing eye.

You can find more information about InfantSEE® and to locate a participating local Optometrist by visiting the InfantSEE® website