Keeping our health in check is important. We should all be monitoring any big changes or unusual symptoms just in case anything needs to be checked out.
A common area we often neglect is our eyes and, as it's National Eye Health Week, it seems a good time to give them a once over. Our eyes get impacted by the wear and tear of ageing, so they're something we should monitor.
We all experience tiredness, or screen-related eye stress now and then, but there are also other things we should be looking out for. Some changes to our vision are frustrating, though not serious, but it's important to know how to distinguish the symptoms.
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It's usual to find it hard to focus on objects that are close to you as you get older, and eyelashes may thin out a bit too. But other issues can cause serious problems if not treated properly.
For example, age makes it more difficult for the eyes to stay lubricated. This can result in the eyes feeling irritated, sticky, dry and gritty.
The lens of the eye can also become less elastic, and our ability to see at night also suffers, which makes it more difficult to drive in the dark. Then issues such as cataracts, macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy can lead to loss of sight.
But, according to Harvard Medical School, there are things you can look out for which may indicate you're experiencing a problem that's slightly more serious. Experts say if you have experienced any of the following signs or symptoms then you should contact your GP to get your eyes checked.
The sooner you catch any potential problems, the more likely you are to save your vision. Even if an issue is not particularly serious, it's always important to get checked to ensure it's not impacting your sight in any way.
Experts say you should call your doctor if you experience:
- Change in iris colour
- Crossed eyes
- Dark spot in the centre of your field of vision
- Difficulty focusing on near or distant objects
- Double vision
- Dry eyes with itching or burning
- Episodes of cloudy vision
- Excess discharge or tearing
- Eye pain
- Floaters or flashers
- Growing bump on the eyelid
- Halos (coloured circles around lights) or glare
- Hazy or blurred vision
- Inability to close an eyelid
- Loss of peripheral vision
- Redness around the eye
- Spots in your field of vision
- Sudden loss of vision
- Trouble adjusting to dark rooms
- Unusual sensitivity to light or glare
- Veil obstructing vision
- Wavy or crooked appearance to straight lines
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