What is myopia and how is it caused?

Myopia or nearsightedness is a condition in which the patient cannot see objects at a distance but are able to see objects close to them. It is caused due to an elongated eye ball that focuses light in front of the retina, thus causing this problem. Some other reasons could be an excessively curved cornea and thick lens that disables the lens from rendering the right focus.

The causes of myopia are not fully understood. Traditional eye care theories have it that myopia may be inherited, but it that was the case then only 2% of newborns have this condition and myopic patients give birth to children who do not have myopia. Therefore myopia being inherited seems unjustifiable and the only answer to this could be environmental reasons. In the modern world, mass media such as televisions and computers induce people to see near objects for very long hours. This causes near-point stress in the eyes and could explain why the cornea or the lenses lose their orientation to support this constant stress.

Why does myopia get progressively worse?

Myopia is treated by employing corrective lens that enables the eyes to focus on distant objects, but people use corrective lens for reading and not for viewing long distance objects. This again causes near-point stress. Therefore, more myopia sets in and correct lens could seem to be inefficient in its functioning. While the corrective lens treats the long distance blurred vision problems, it aggravates the underlying near-point stress. Therefore the need of the hour is to visit an eye clinic such as Houston LASIK & Eye in Houston and get proper treatment and advice on how to use corrective lens.

Are there eye exercises for myopia?

Doctors recommend the combination of eye exercises with eye treatments such as LASIK laser eye surgery to combat myopia. The onus is to reduce near-point stress. Importantly patients must lessen reading with glasses prescribed for long distance viewing. There are multiple advantages of eye exercise.

  • Help increase the functioning of the eyes and helps augment its focusing powers.
  • Reduces strain and stress build-up in the eyes. Alleviates pressure build-up in the optic nerves.
  • Some patients have high sensitivity to light, which causes eye strain. Eye exercises reduce such light sensitivity by several notches.
  • Strengthens the eyes.

The following are some eye exercises for myopia:

Near-far exercise

Stand in the middle of a room and hold an object in front of you. Hang a picture on the wall and stand in front of the picture. Focus your eyes on the object for about two minutes and suddenly shift focus to the picture on the wall. Initially the picture may appear distorted but gradually the eyes are able to regain focus.

Focus detailing

Stand in a room with a lot of objects near and far. Focus on each object and try to sight its every detail. Do this for all the objects in the room, near and far.

 

Houston LASIK & Eye leads in providing premium LASIK technologies to Houston, Sugar Land, and the surrounding region. The Center’s award-winning medical director introduced revolutionary technologies such as iLASIK to the region. This technology is used by NASA astronauts, Navy SEALS and Air Force fighter pilots. At Houston LASIK & Eye, you can now receive the same treatment. For more information, please call (281) 240-0478 or visit us at www.houston-lasik.com.

About the Author
Amjad Khokhar, M.D. is Chief LASIK Surgeon at Houston LASIK & Eye. Add Dr. Khokhar on Google+ here.
Sources:

www.medicinenet.com

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