Low prescription of eyeglasses - to wear, or avoid?

amother

Tan

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 2:37 pm

My son who is 11 had his eye exam and had numbers come back as .25 and .5. The doctor said it's "up to him" whether or not to get glasses for such low numbers. He has no preference. I'm wondering which is the healthier choice for his long term vision, is it to wear the glasses or not at this point?

amother

Cerulean

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 2:40 pm

Can't tell you specifically about your child, but my son also tested a little nearsighted. He actually wasn't complaining about his vision, but he failed the screening at his yearly checkup so the pediatrician sent us for full vision testing. The opthalmologist said he prefers not to treat it at this stage since he isn't complaining about symptoms of poor vision even though he is technically nearsighted. So we'll be going back if he's symptomatic or if his vision gets worse at the next check up screening.

Iymnok

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 2:44 pm

I was told that children’s eyes could Chan drastically in a short time. Dd also has a very low prescription. Since it doesn’t affect her in class we decided to wait 6 months to see if anything changed. Same with ds who in far-sighted. I think eventually they will need, but it’s just not worth it if they don’t feel it is.
They won’t wear those expensive glasses, and likely lose them since they don’t need them enough. Also if his prescription changes, you’ll just have to get new ones.
Bottom line, only get them if he feels it would make a difference for him.

amother

Amethyst

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 2:44 pm

Huh? These arent numbers usually prescribed theyre that small (I worked at ophalmologist many years) I usually am happy to get my kids glasses when they need it: a new world opened up to me
(Btw: it doesnt “make a childs eyes worse” to wear glasses that he can use)

studying_torah

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 2:44 pm

I found actually one kid reads a lot more fluently when wearing the low prescription glasses; it helps my other child's headaches.
I guess it depends on whether there are symptoms that improve or not.

amother

Natural

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 2:45 pm

I think you should try a cheap pair and see whether he needs them or not. If you're in Brooklyn there's a place on Ave L east 10 (glasses are us)I got a pair including lenses for $30 total and I wear them everyday.

amother

Aubergine

Wed, Mar 06 2019, 3:04 pm

I had this as a kid and went for a while without glasses. In retrospect, I think it was a mistake. I was constantly squinting and got headaches easily. Turns out I had an undiagnosed astigmatism and would have benefited from having glasses earlier.
How does your son feel about it? Maybe give it a try and see if it makes a difference for him.

oneofakind

Tue, Mar 12 2019, 10:09 am

My daughter started with a very low prescription for driving and wore glasses for a short time. She took them off and hasn't needed them since and it's been over 10 years.

Tzutzie

Tue, Mar 12 2019, 10:45 am

I was under the impression that under 1.00 you don't treat it.

My kid has a 1.25 on one eye (as do I) and the doctor recommend NOT to give her glasses. But to come back in a year. Because it might actually make it worse.

I used to have a .75 I was having migraines and I associated it with my not wearing glasses. I took lenses and it didn't help at all. The headaches passed (was hormone related) but by then my number went up to 1.25!
Since I stopped wearing it it has stalled at 1.25 for a few years now. Perfect vision in other eye.

What does the doctor say is better?
"Up to him" response makes it seem like the doctor isn't too competent.

amother

Crimson

Tue, Mar 12 2019, 11:03 am

We had the exact same thing - and my son is the same age!

"Up to him" isn't a sign of incompetence. Out eye doctor is top in the field!
It means that his prescription is borderline. So if he's not bothered by it, he could get away without glasses.

Whereas if he typically sits near the back of the class and has trouble seeing the board, or feels frustrated not seeing people's facial expressions or being able to make eye contact with people down the hall at school, or if he gets eye strain / head aches / tired eyes... then do him a favour and get him glasses to correct his minimal refractive error.

sympa

Tue, Mar 12 2019, 11:05 am

amother wrote:

... I'm wondering which is the healthier choice for his long term vision, is it to wear the glasses or not at this point?

Modern optometric opinion is that it doesn't make a difference to long term vision. Kids eyes tend to get worse over time, but not always. So, if he doesn't have an opinion, just wait until he needs them.

miami85

Tue, Mar 12 2019, 11:33 am

I think it depends on how well he is functioning, if he can function then go without, is there any astigmatism involved? My prescription is pretty low (something like -1.5 and -1.75), but my astigmatism makes it that I can't legally drive without them.
My son was originally told to "only wear for distance" as his prescription was so light, but being that most "distance" issues occur at school and he was in preschool/pre1a he rarely wore them at home and it was hard to monitor and by the end of 1st grade he ended up needing them full-time.
He's a bit on the young side and the prescription is so slight, but perhaps something to consider is contact lenses, my husband was practically "going blind" and his vision was declining rapidly, but since getting contact lenses his eyes have stablized. My eyes have only dropped slightly and that is post-pregnancy.