October is Eye Injury Prevention Month
Eye injuries should be a major concern for everyone. Some of these injuries can result in severe, irreversible damage - including permanent blindness - from accidents that could have been easily prevented if safety procedures would have been in place.
Protecting your eyes from injury is one of the most basic things you can do to keep your vision healthy throughout your life. What is the easiest step to preventing 90% of these injuries? Proper protective eyewear!! And yet only 35% of a survey wear this protection while doing home repairs or playing sports!
Some interesting facts -
- Men sustain eye injury more than wormen
- Most eye injuries occur in the HOME - home repairs, yardwork, cleaning and cooking
- More than 40% are due to sports or recreational activities
- Eyes can be damaged by sun exposure, not just chemicals, dust or objects
- This time of year illegally sold cosmetic contact lenses for costumes cause serious eye problems
Ways to improve the risk of eye injuries in the home include -
- Good lighting
- Wearing proper safety glasses when doing yardwork, as rocks and sticks can become dangerous projectiles from mowers and trimmers
- Keeping chemicals safely away where children cannot have contact - some can permanently destroy the surface of your eyes causing permanent blindness
- Have at least one pair of ANSI - approved protective eyewear that can be worn by members of your household (ANSI is American National Standards Institute) - this eyewear can be purchased at any hardward type store
- Wear proper protective sports eyewear
The doctors and staff of Ankeny Family Vision Center are ready to help if an eye injury should occur. We prefer you wear proper protective eyewear but please call us any time of day or night if you should have an injury that is threatening. We also have proper protective sports eyewear in the office for you to purchase for that young one you love as he or she plays their favorite sport.
Come see us! Save that precious eyesight! Don't let an injury occur and have that protective eyewear be too late!
(Information taken from numerous websites.)