EYE CARE FOR ADULTS

Deterioration in near-sightedness (inability to see far things) slows down or stabilizes with age. Continue to care for your eyes with a comfortable working distance, good reading posture, good illumination, and frequent eye rests. But new problems may appear, and you have to look out for them.

General tips

• Know how to dislodge a foreign body from the eye
• When outdoors, wear sunglasses that protect against ultraviolet light, to prevent development of cataract (cloudiness of the normally transparent eye lens)

Go for eye checks

• If your near-sightedness is severe (600-700 degrees or more), have periodic eye checks.
• If you wear contact lenses, have an eye check every year or as often as your eye doctor recommends
• By age 45, you may wish to have an eye check every two years, particularly if you have a family history of glaucoma (raised eye pressure). (Some symptoms of glaucoma are blurring vision, seeing halos, and pain.)
• Around age 45-50, far-sightedness (inability to see near things) starts to develop. It is nothing to be alarmed about, and all you need is a pair of reading glasses, or bifocals (glasses where the upper half enables you to see far and the lower half to see near.
• If you have diabetes, have an eye check every year. Eye complications may develop in diabetics whose blood sugar level is poorly controlled.

PROPER USE OF CONTACT LENSES

Contact lenses are popular alternative to eye glasses. People wear them for a variety of reasons: for active sports, to replace uncomfortable heavy glasses, or simply, to look good. But contact lenses are not without their problems. They can cause allergy, infection, and eye injury if not used properly.

Eyes get infected easily and must be kept clean. Hands must be scrupulously clean when handling and cleaning contact lenses, and when putting them on and taking them out. Proper use of contact lenses involves the following:

Strict cleanliness

• Wash your hands with soap and water each time before touching the contact lenses, putting them on, and taking them out.
• Wash the lens container thoroughly, first normal saline, then with disinfecting solution, each time before the lenses are stored in them.
• Change the disinfecting solution in the lens container daily.
• Do not touch the tips of all lens care solution containers, to prevent contamination.

How to store contact lenses properly

1. Wash your hands with soap and water
2. Wash the lens container thoroughly
3. Take out the contact lens from one eye and place in in the palm of your hand
4. Pour a few drops of lens cleaning solution over the lens
5. Rinse (by gently rubbing) the lens in the cleaning solution
6. Store the lens by immersing it in disinfecting solution in the lens container
7. Repeat steps 3-6 for the other lens. (Note: One contact lens is cleaned and stored at a time, to prevent mixing up the right and left lenses)

How to put on contact lenses properly

1. Wash your hands with soap and water
2. Remove one contact lens from the container and place it in the palm of your hand
3. Pour a few drops of normal saline over the lens
4. Rinse (by shaking) the lens in saline.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 at least twice, to completely rinse off any disinfecting solution (from the lens container) clinging to the lens
6. Put on the lens
7. Repeat step 2-6 with the other lens

De-proteinising

With time, protein waste materials from the eyes and tears build up slowly on contact lenses, particularly soft lenses. This protein coating on the lenses is not visible. But it often causes irritation and allergy, resulting in eye inflammation. To prevent this, de-proteinise your contact lenses with protein removal solutions/tablets weekly, or as often as recommended by your eye doctor.

Regular replacement

Unfortunately, the protein build-up on contact lenses is difficult to remove. Even regular de-proteinising is not fully effective. And eventually, the protein build-up reaches a stage when contact lenses have to be replaced. For most people, daily-wear contact lenses need to be replaced after 1-2 years. The alternative is to wear disposable contact lenses.

Regular eye checks

Have an eye check every year, or as often as your eye doctor recommends. But if you have symptoms of tearing, red eyes, pain, or blurring of vision, stop wearing your contact lenses and see your eye doctor at once.

This information was taken from Your Health Guide, The Family Health Guide.