Fifty per cent of sight loss in the UK is avoidable!
It's easy to neglect your eyes because our eyes rarely hurt when something is wrong with them, so having regular eye tests is important to help detect potentially harmful conditions.
Having an eye test won't just tell you if you need new glasses or a change of prescription – it's also an important eye health check.
A sight test can detect any number of health problems, including diabetes, macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts, detached retinas, the eye cancer retinoblastoma and many others which may otherwise go undetected until it is too late.
Early detection of such conditions means early treatment, which in turn can lead to your sight being saved.
That’s why Devon in Sight, Devon’s leading sight loss charity is running its ‘Seeing in the New Year Campaign’ to encourage people to make a New Year’s resolution for 2024 to have their eyes tested.
Devon in Sight Chief Executive Officer Grahame Flynn said, “This is the eleventh year that we have run our ‘Seeing in the New Year Campaign’.
We would encourage people of all ages to see an Optician at least every two years. Even people with an existing problem should get their eyes tested regularly as conditions can get worse or new problems can develop. We at Devon in Sight are proud of the work we do with people who are blind or partially sighted, but, as they say, prevention is better than cure.”
New Year is also a good time to look at other ways to protect your sight by making a New Year’s Resolution. Smokers are much more likely to develop age-related macular degeneration, which is the most common cause of sight loss in the UK, and cataracts than non-smokers. Heavy alcohol consumption may also increase the risk of developing early age-related macular degeneration. It is strongly recommended that you give up smoking and drink within the recommended limits.
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