We all want the best for our children. This means giving them the right food, plenty of love, and lots of memorable childhood experiences. It also means making sure that they are healthy so that they can grow and excel in every aspect. Too often, eye care is overlooked when it comes to taking care of our kids. Frequenting the pediatrician on a regular basis is a given, but routinely having your child see an eye care physician is equally as important.

What Does Eye Care Do for My Child?

One of life’s golden rules is “The best way to treat something is to prevent it from happening in the first place.” The medical field and eye care, in particular, are no exceptions when it comes to this. But what’s the key to prevention?

Early detection is the single best way to deal with most issues. If you can find the problem before it gets a chance to do serious damage or get out of control, you have a much better chance of successfully dealing with it. This is especially crucial when we are still in our developmental stages of life.

How Often Do I Schedule Pediatric Eye Exams?

The first eye exam should be around 6 months. Then again at ages 3, 5, and 6. A full eye exam is always strongly recommended just before they start elementary school. Poor vision can lead to struggling with learning, as more mental power is diverted to trying to see the material than actually absorb it. It can also affect a child’s confidence and be emotionally draining, leading to more frustration- both for you and your child.

What We Look For in A Pediatric Exam

Since it is so important for children to be able to fully access their abilities in order to learn as much as possible as quickly as possible, they are tested on many visual attributes. These attributes include:

• Ability to see close as well as at a distance
• Ability to change focal points
• Coordination between both eyes
• Depth Perception
• How well the eyes track
• Hand-eye coordination
• Peripheral vision.

If child your has frequent headaches, constant fatigue, is sensitive to light, and rubs his or her eyes frequently, they may have a seeing issue. Swollen, red, crusty eyes could be an infection. Don’t wait for it to go away, schedule an appointment ASAP!

Dr. Diamante Stands Out

Dr. Diamante is a leader in Rhode Island area when it comes to pediatric eye care. Not only does he provide attentive care during routine visits to his clinic, but he is skilled at diagnosing and treating conditions such as strabismus- a condition that affects around 4% of children in the U.S.and causes their eyes to not align properly.

Start their care early and form good habits along the way, contact us today!