1. See Your Optometrist Regularly
In order to manage your nearsightedness, or myopia, it is important to visit your eye professional at least once a year. Your doctor will test your vision and write out a prescription that will best correct your distance blurriness. This may require new glasses or different contact lenses from year to year, as many people experience vision changes throughout their lives. Wearing an old, outdated prescription after your sight has changed can cause your eyes to work harder, resulting in increased nearsightedness over time. Having your eyes examined regularly will help keep myopia in check.
2. Follow Your Doctor's Recommended Treatment Plan
When your optometrist or ophthalmologist prescribes glasses or contacts, he or she will also explain to you how often they are to be worn and how they are to be cleaned and stored. An essential way to keep your nearsightedness in check is to follow the instructions exactly. Failing to wear your corrective lenses when recommended can result in overworked eyes and the possibility of worse vision, requiring a stronger prescription in the future.
3. Minimize Eyestrain From Daily Tasks
Another way to manage your nearsightedness is to prevent your eyes from working harder than they should. Staring at a computer all day is certainly a stress to the eyes, as is excessive TV watching, reading, long periods of driving and visually detail-oriented projects. Minimizing this added eyestrain involves doing things like taking frequent breaks from your tasks, shifting your focus regularly, reducing glare where possible and practicing eye-strengthening exercises as directed by your doctor.
4. Live a Healthy, Smoke-Free Lifestyle
The health and effectiveness of your eyes are partly determined by your overall health. This means that you can indirectly manage your myopia by managing conditions like high blood pressure and diabetes. These issues as well as things like smoking or drug use can disrupt your body's chemistry and normal processes, negatively affecting your eyes and your vision. You can also keep your eyes healthy by eating a well-balanced diet, taking care to include enough beta carotene and vitamin A, which are nutrients proven to improve eyesight.
