How often do you take DC for eye test?

[WaterBottle123]

Took DD1 today, she's 10 and we hadn't been since 2018, got slightly told off by optician, even though DD1 has perfect sight.

Bumped into friend afterwards who said none of her DC had ever been.

Curious what's normal? And if you don't visit the optician do you also not visit dentist?

If children have an issue with their sight it’s really important to pick it up early as some things - like a ‘lazy eye’, which is really common - cannot be fixed after 6 years old but is reversible before that. I had no idea one of my DC had this until we were randomly playing a game and they literally couldn’t see anything much out of one eye. It was a shock! We’d have picked it up earlier on an eye test and not needed to wait for DC to have language to describe what was happening if I’d known eye tests were encouraged young - as PPs say, it was never part of my childhood. Which is weird as my mum wore glasses from an early age.

I had quite a lot of trouble finding an optician for reception age DD who wasn't reliably reading- it took a lot of phoning around. Will specsavers et al see them now?

This has reminded me to take DD2 actually before she starts school. I go regularly as I wear glasses and had all sorts of very early childhood interventions (unfortunately it did not completely cure my lazy eye and I cannot get a decent passport photo as a result). Luckily the kids seem to have inherited their dad's eyesight.

Dentists have been more difficult for the last year. Dd1 has some trouble with her teeth so I forced the dentist to see her again in the autumn at which point we got a referral to the dental hospital. DD 2 probably not seen since 2019. Our dentist is still merrily seeing private patients though

Yearly since he was 4. The optician said we can probably switch to longer gaps once he’s 8 but apparently eyesight changes before then, then it settles down.

I started taking mine when they were about 5 then every year, they are both on a two year recall now as teens with no problems detected. Dentist every six months. We both go regularly too, I've been wearing glasses or contact lenses since I was 8. I was staggered when a friend mentioned she was thinking of going for the first time in years in her late 40s when she needed reading glasses, I kind of thought everyone went regularly.

Please everyone do take your children for an eye test.

I started complaining I couldn't see properly when I was 9, I didn't get to the optician for a year and a half after that. I have astigmatism that has been there since birth.

I didn't used to wear my glasses all the time, when I was about 14 I got contacts. They sent me off to have a walk around and I apparently shocked my dad by saying, "I can read the names of the shops over the other side of the road.

I worked with someone who was about 14 when she was at a football match with her dad she said to him, "you can't see those numbers on the shirts, stop pretending"

I thought my eyesight was fine. I also thought that everyone saw halos around street lights and headlights. Then a high street optician referred me to the eye department at hospital and I was diagnosed with a rare eye disease.

Get your eyes checked regularly!!!

Both my girls have been wearing glasses since about 4, they are 11 & 13 now so they are tested once a year

Optician - every two years. I used to take them annually but they all have perfect sight so the optician told me every two years is fine.

Dentist every six months.

@Popcornbetty

I'm shocked at the wishy washy attitude towards eye health on this thread, it is so important not just ist for vision but other potential conditions too. I remember my Aunt swearing she had 20/20 vision, no headaches and hadn't been checked for years, turned out she needed bifocals!

I agree. The ignorance on this thread is astounding. Optometrists don't just check your vision, but the health of your eyes. They can also pick up conditions that can indicate other health issues.

The problem with never going for an eye test means that you don't actually know how good or bad your eyesight is.

I wonder how many people who think they have perfect vision are driving illegally?

I knew someone who had no idea that he needed glasses until he went to take his driving test. When the examiner asked him to read a number plate he couldn't so he failed him on the spot.

Those of you who take your eyesight for granted please have regular eye tests. You only get one set of eyes.

Optician annually - they both wear glasses
Dentist - every 6 months, though didn't do last checkup due to CV.

I took ds1 once to an optician because he asked for it (a classmate got glasses and ds1 got jealous).

Dentist I take them regularly to. Dc love the Spider-Man stickers and I love it when the dentist reminds them they are to young to brush their teeth independently. It is very handy to say remember what the dentist said? When I get “I can do it myself!”

Since the age of 5 I’ve taken dd & ds annually. DD was under the eye hospital for suspected turn until she was 4. DD has worn glasses since the end of year 4 so sometimes she has been several times a year.
DS is over due but due to COVID they requested he wait since he isn’t complaining of headaches or not been able to see the whiteboard.

I had quite a lot of trouble finding an optician for reception age DD who wasn't reliably reading- it took a lot of phoning around. Will specsavers et al see them now?

They use shapes for non-readers, not letters. I’ve been taking mine to Specsavers since they were three and way off reading.

We were told by our school before starting reception to take them, that way if there were any issues learning wise they would know it wasn't due to eye sight problems. I think mine were about 11 before recommended appointments were every two years rather than every year.

In our area all schools recommend eye tests before starting school. There are issues which can be resolved with early intervention meaning kids might wear glasses from 5-10 ish but not need them after that. The cut off for intervention is 7 as I understood it at the time.

Annually, but more if I think there's an issue.
The HV did eye tests for them at 2 I think, as I've worn glasses since childhood. Then I got them checked from the summer before they started school and every year since.

Kids eye tests, and glasses are free, so there's no reason not to get them checked.

When DD was little she had a pre-school eye test. Do these not happen now?

I had no idea that she had an eye problem until this test. It was discovered that she had quite bad astigmatism in one eye and is long sighted. She has had eye problems since then, and so have I, which is why I am meticulous about having regular eye checks.

As has been pointed out, eye problems have a nasty habit of creeping up on you without you knowing - my friend's son's tumour was discovered during an eye test. Treatment was successful because it was caught early.

Annually at the opticians.

6 monthly at the dentists.

My son failed his eye test at age 4 in reception. He was so short sighted! He said when he got his glasses the world was ‘shiny’ again. I assumed I would notice if he had sight problems but because it was one eye that was bad the other was over compensating.

@RampantIvy

When DD was little she had a pre-school eye test. Do these not happen now?

I had no idea that she had an eye problem until this test. It was discovered that she had quite bad astigmatism in one eye and is long sighted. She has had eye problems since then, and so have I, which is why I am meticulous about having regular eye checks.

As has been pointed out, eye problems have a nasty habit of creeping up on you without you knowing - my friend's son's tumour was discovered during an eye test. Treatment was successful because it was caught early.

@RampantIvy

They do but they can't be relied upon as they are so quick and perfunctory. Friends DD was minus 8 in one eye and they pronounced her to be fine, same with DD2 who is minus 4. It's apparently fairly well known amongst opticians that the tests are poor and hence a check with a high street optician is recommended

Mine go every year since 3 -

DD friend first went at 11 and she was blind in one eye and thought it was normal!

Personally I think it should be a routine thing like dental check ups, but I feel like there's no real guidance on this for the public. I've never worn glasses, and had no real idea what was required, but I took my dds when they were 4 and 6, and the younger one turned out to need quite a strong glasses prescription. Neither of us had any idea there was a problem. As others have said, eye health is also an important part of it.

DS 5 due to start school in August, so all the children in nursery will be offered an eye test next month to check if any of this intake need glasses. We are in Scotland.

Personally I think it should be a routine thing like dental check ups

I agree. I think parents should get a reminder letter or text for eye tests, like they do for vaccination invitations.

The problem is that you don't know something isn't right until you have a point of comparison to what should be correct, so what feels normal for you is normal. I hope I have explained that well.

And yes to the poster where kids can’t read they offer animals and shapes and color chars to see if they are color blind

We live in Germany, they check kids' eyesight briefly at the yearly check up, but there's a gap between age 10 and 13 with nothing. Prob won't take my 12yo unless he seems to be constantly squinting at things. In the UK it would not have occurred to me to take my kids for an eye test.

Dentist six monthly. Or 1-2 yearly when I forget to book an appointment