Myth 1
Eating carrots will improve your vision
Vitamin A is essential for the body to maintain healthy eyesight and carrots have high amounts of this nutrient. While eating foods rich in vitamin A can help you maintain good eyesight, it won’t improve your vision or keep you from needing glasses or contacts.
Myth 2
You can improve your vision with eye exercises
Eye exercises will not improve or preserve vision or reduce the need for glasses. Your vision depends on many factors, none of which can be significantly altered with eye exercises. However, eye exercises may be helpful for convergence insufficiency, a condition that occurs when the eyes don’t work together to focus on a nearby object, making it difficult to read.
Myth 3
Sun gazing—or, looking directly at the sun—can improve your health and well-being.
Staring at the sun for even a short time without wearing the right eye protection can damage your retina permanently and even cause blindness. Ordinary sunglasses and homemade filters are not safe for looking at the sun.
Myth 4
People who are colour blind see in black and white
Most people who are colour blind see partial colour. The most severe form of colour blindness, in which everything is seen in shades of gray, is uncommon. Most people with colour blindness have difficulty distinguishing between greens and reds.
Myth 5
Sitting very close to the TV can damage your eyes
While sitting very close to the television may cause eye strain or give you a headache, it will not damage vision in children or adults. However, habitually sitting close to the television may signal that the person is nearsighted and, in fact, needs glasses. Children have heightened ability to focus on nearby objects, so they might find it more comfortable to sit close to the TV.
Myth 6
People who wear glasses will ruin their eyes if they read fine print or do a lot of close-up work.
Reading and detail work do not wear out the eyes. But they can strain your eyes, making them tired. Taking periodic rests by gazing into the distance or looking up can help provide relief.
Myth 7
Wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses will make you dependent on them.
Using your glasses won’t worsen your vision or lead to any eye disease. If you need glasses for distance or reading, it is important to use them to avoid straining your eyes and to ensure your best vision possible.
Myth 8
Losing vision is an inevitable part of aging.
Many vision problems that develop as people age can be treated. Presbyopia, which is near-vision loss, and cataracts can both be remedied to allow adults to see clearly again. It is important to have eye exams on a yearly basis to catch both reversible and permanent threats to vision, such as glaucoma or macular degeneration. Oftentimes, early treatment can slow or prevent vision loss.
Myth 9
A cataract must be ‘ripe’ before it is removed.
A cataract can be removed as soon as it compromises your vision. Thanks to modern advances in cataract surgery, the lens can now be removed from the eye as soon as it’s cloudy enough to make reading fine print or street signs difficult.
Myth 10
Eyes can be transplanted.
It is not possible today to transplant a whole eye because this complex organ is connected to your brain by the optic nerve. The optic nerve is made up of more than 1 million tiny nerve fibers. Once these nerve fibers are cut, they cannot be reconnected. However, ophthalmologists can transplant the cornea, which is the clear front part of your eye.