Many parents assume that their children will tell them if they cannot see well, but unfortunately, many young children just don't understand that they are having a vision problem until they are tested for it. Their eyesight may gradually decline and not even be noticeable to them. There are also eye disorders that cannot be detected with just a typical vision-chart reading given at their school. It is very important to have your child's eyes examined regularly after he or she turns six months of age. You can then detect and treat the following eye problems that may not be detectable without a full vision exam. 

1. Lazy Eye

Contrary to popular belief, lazy eye, or amblyopia, is often not detectable just by looking at a person. It is also not detected by a traditional vision chart eye exam that may be given in elementary school. That leaves a professional, in-depth eye exam from a provider like Absolute Vision Care as the only way to detect that your child is having this problem. 

With this eye problem, one eye does not focus on objects like the other does, and it instead lets the other eye do all of the "work". When caught early, this eye disorder can be corrected with vision therapy. While it can be corrected later in life, the earlier it is caught, the better the chances are of your child recovering from this eye problem. 

2. Crossed Eyes

Most parents think that a child who is cross-eyed, or has strabismus, will show obvious signs of this disorder. The truth is that if your child's eyes actually begin to look like they are drifting or "crossed", it means the disorder has been progressing for quite some time. Some of the first signs are also mistaken for many other problems that have nothing to do with sight.

For example, children beginning to develop strabismus may simply start tilting their heads to the side, which will often make them think the child is having trouble with their ears or neck.

This disorder can often be corrected with natural vision therapy, such as wearing an eye patch and eye-muscle strengthening exercises prescribed by a physician. If it is left undiagnosed until later in life when signs are obvious, it may require surgery to correct,. 

3. Convergence Insufficiency

Convergence insufficiency is an eye problem that makes looking at objects up close difficult. Unlike being nearsighted, this is not a problem with the eye lens, but rather a lack of ability of both eyes to focus together. Vision charts used to test eyes at schools surprisingly cannot detect this problem that must be detected by a more extensive eye exam. 

With early detection, this is another eye problem that is easily treated with vision therapy exercises. When it is not caught early on, your child will not only have difficulty reading in school, but he or she may end up having to wear special prism eyeglasses for life. 

Being having your child's eyes examined thoroughly as soon as he or she reaches six-months of age and continue throughout their childhood, even if your child's school gives them annual vision-chart tests. Not all eye disorders can be caught with chart readings, and when caught early, many eye problems can be corrected with simple vision therapy.