Does your child have Lazy Eye?

Have you notice that your child's eye stray when he stares at you? If so, have him checked for amblyopia, or "lazy eye." Visual pathways carry images from the eyes to the brain. When visual pathways do not develop correctly, one eye becomes stronger than the other. The weaker eye lags behind in recognizing visual messages and the brain depends more on the strong eye. The weaker and unused eye strays from the point of visual focus. The result? Poor vision. When this happens, a doctor prescribes prescription glasses or an eye patch that covers the stronger eye and forces the weaker eye to work harder. Poor nutrition, injury (traumatic amblyopia) and cross eye (strabismus) are some factors that influence the development of amblyopia. The key to treating amblyopia is detection before ages 8 to 10. Otherwise, it may be too late for corrective glasses or eye patches.

3 tips you can to do check your childs eyesight

Although going to a doctor is the best choice for this, but there are also some ways that you can check to determine if your child has a problem with their eyesight.

1. CAMERA TRICK. Take a good look at a photo of your child. The flash of the camera should reflect in your child's eye. If this does not fall on the same spot in both eyes, there's a possibility your child's eye are misaligned. Also if you're checking for red eye in photos, both eyes must show the same color. If one of his eyes has a different color, then it would be best to consult your ophthalmologist.

2. FLASH OF LIGHT. Shine a flashlight on your child's eye. The reflex should also fall on the same spot on both eyes. If the spots are not in a similar location, then misalignment is possible.

3. PATCH ME UP. Cover on of your child's eye and ask him to focus on an object. After a while, move the patch to his other eye. If the other eyes moves while one is patched, then your child might have a problem with focusing.