You put sunblock all over your kids bodies to protect them from the suns rays, but what about their eyes? Protecting your children’s eyes can be one of the most important things we can do for our children but it’s probably the easiest to overlook! I had no idea how vulnerable our little ones eyes can be until reading the great information from VSP and the Eyefiles!
The four-part webisode series takes a peek inside the life of a mom as she wrestles with the concerns she has over her children’s eye health. The first webisode focuses on sports vision and the impact your eyes have on athletic performance. Dr. Leanne Liddicoat, a VSP optometrist, joins Evans in the videos, offering practical tips to help keep children’s vision healthy whether they are playing sports, playing outside in the sun, using digital devices or watching 3D movies.
Parents wouldn’t dream of letting their kids ride a bike without a helmet, yet most parents let their children play high-impact sports without protective eyewear. Each year, more than 600,000 sports-related eye injuries occur. According the National Eye Institute, someone goes to the hospital for an eye-related injury every 13 minutes. However, it’s estimated that 90% of these injuries could’ve been avoided.
EyeFiles tackles important concerns around keeping kids eyes healthy and safe, including tackling some of these important questions parents have:
- How can parents keep their kids’ eyes safe while playing sports?
- What types of sport-related eye injuries can occur?
- What sports have the most eye-related injuries?
- At what age can children start wearing contacts instead of sports goggles? Are there any concerns with contact use?
- If my child is under performing on the field, could they have a vision problem?
We’d love for you to watch the short video above and enter into a great giveaway for a designer pair of sunglasses thanks to VSP! All you have to do to enter is leave us a comment after watching the video and ask any question you may have about how to keep your kids eyes healthy and safe.
- If you’d like an extra entry, head on over to the VSP Facebook Page and “like” them! Be sure to tell us in your comment so we can keep track of your entries!
- This giveaway will end at NOON on Saturday, July 16th and we will use random.org to announce the winner on our Facebook Page!
Good Luck!
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
I watched entered and liked :) My question is… what is the best way to get your two year old to keep the sunglasses on!? Ava just dropped her Ariel's in the lake… she thinks there is a mermaid somewhere wearing her sunglasses!!!
i would love to win a pair of sunglasses. Designer Sunglasses are built and made out of good quality materials that you can really be sure will last forever. And this is very expensive because of the fact that the designer is a popular person in the fashion world and among celebrities.
I watched the video. I have always tried to keep sunglasses on my son. He has always been really good about wearing a hat too. Lately he has been pushing the sunglasses up on his forehead. He seems bothered like he can't see through them to play. Any ideas for convincing kids to keep them on?
I "liked" VSP too.
I used to have VSP and they were great. I guess the hardest part is getting kids (no matter what age) to wear sunglasses. I'd like to know how to make them want to wear them and remember to put them on before going outside. I rarely leave the door without mine and certainly do not drive in the daytime without them.
I am now following VSP on Facebook (kyklips)
Found the video really helpful. I'm curious if most kids glasses that you find and discount stores and mall stores genereally provide 100%uva and uvb or if there is somewhere else you'd recomend shopping for those type glasses. Thanks. Would love a new pair of glasses for me too:)
i watched the video and i would love a pair of sunglasses! i was wondering how do you know if the sunglasses you buy really are uv protected or they just say they are?
Here are the answers to your questions from VSP Optometrist Dr. Liddicoat!
**What is the best way to get your two year old to keep the sunglasses on?**
A good way to help keep your kids’ sunglasses on is to purchase a pair that come with a special strap to help hold the frame in place, which come in handy, especially if the child wants to pull the sunglasses off. If you can’t find a pair with a strap, trivex-material frames and impact-resistant lenses, such as polycarbonate, are sometimes covered by vision insurance and will help to keep them safe if dropped or thrown.
**Most kid’s glasses that you find and discount stores and mall stores generally provide 100% UVA and UVB but is there somewhere else you’d recommend shopping for those type glasses?**
An optometrist is a great resource for finding the best UVA and UVB protected sunglasses that fit comfortably to their face. Before purchasing sunglasses at the mall or discount stores, make sure you check the sunglasses for a label that says the glasses provide both UVA and UVB protection.
**How do you know if the sunglasses you buy really are UV protected? Are there glasses that say there are and really aren’t?**
Great question – unfortunately it's not possible to "see" the protection that sunglasses offer – dark lenses don't automatically filter out more harmful UV radiation as compared to light lenses. Several standards for sunglasses allow a general classification of the UV protection and manufacturers often indicate simply that the they meet the requirements of a specific standard rather than publish the exact figures. So the only way to asses the exact protection of sunglasses is to have the lenses measured, either by the manufacturer or by a properly equipped eyecare professional. Some optometrists' offices also have a lensometer that measures UV transmittance through a lens, confirming the amount of UV blockage.
My daughter is starting kindergarten later this month – how often do I need to get her eyes checked now that she’s starting school?