26 August 2013 www.womanthismonth.com Looking after your health and lifestyle should include looking after your eyes as well. Eye care specialists at Optica offer a list of simple steps to follow to keep your sight at its best. Q: Why do you need an eye test? A: Here are a few red flags that indicate you need to come in for an eye test straight away: • Checking your email gives you a headache • You see things in double • When you confuse colours (e.g. not being able to tell greens from reds) • You flunked your vision test when renewing your driver’s license • You can’t read the newspaper properly, even with reading glasses on • You trip over steps or gutters, even when your shoelaces are done up • Everything’s glary, even in normal lighting • Your night vision is particularly bad • Your eyes feel sore or red • If you are a longstanding diabetes and/or hypertension patient, you may experience sudden changes in vision since these health disorders affect sight as well. Q. What are the simple steps to maintain good eyesight? A: While most of it is common knowledge, it is wise to master these steps: • Eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables. • Shield your eyes from the sun with sunglasses or tinted lenses that carry the UV400 mark. Overexposure to UV rays can cause a number of problems including cataracts and age-related muscular degeneration. Avoid using replica sunglasses; they do not provide 100 per cent UV protection. • Smokers are three times more likely to develop cataracts than non-smokers. Try bidding adieu to the habit. • If you use a computer, take short frequent breaks to prevent eye strain and tiredness or look up occasionally and focus on something in the distance. • If you get dust, sand or grit in your eye, do not rub it. Pull your upper eyelid over the bottom eyelid and blink frequently to encourage your tears to naturally wash your eyes. • Contact lens wearers must get their lenses and eyes checked more regularly than spectacle wearers and also keep a firm eye on their contact lens solution expiry date. Keep an Eye On It BEAUTY | q&a Q:What are the various steps to a complete eye test? A: The steps to a complete eye test are as follows: Step One: Background check If it is your first time, you will be asked about your lifestyle, health conditions and potential vision problems. This is for the optometrist to customise the proposed eye care solution to perfectly fit your personal needs. If you are already in the clients’ database, the optometrist will be able to see your history. Step Two: Eye test The optometrist will conduct a visual screening of your eyes. In order to make sure that you have 20/20 vision with the help of sophisticated instruments and a series of tests, the optometrist will be able to find out what the best visual correction for you is. (If you have 20/20 vision, it means that when you stand 20 feet away from the test chart you can see clearly what a ‘normal’ human eye can see.) Step Three: Checking contact lenses If you are a contact lens user, the optometrist will inspect the anterior part of the eye, making sure that your current contact lenses fit your eyes optimally. Alternatively he/she will give you a customised suggestion for contact lenses that suit you best. Step Four: Findings After the examination, you will be taken through the findings and the next steps will be explained to you. For more information on how to care for your eyes or for a check-up, drop in to any of Optica’s outlets. Visit www.optica.net.
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