Health & Fitness

Presbyopia (pronounced prez-bee-oh-pee-yuh) is a natural occurrence of near vision loss, affecting millions of people every year. As with many other parts of the body, changes for the worse occur in a persons eyesight as he or she gets older. This usually starts taking place in middle age and then progresses through age 65.

Doctors have found people who are nearsighted tend to experience presbyopia later in life than those who are farsighted. Some people find themselves holding papers, books or other reading material away from their eyes to see it clearly. If you notice you can read things better the farther they are from your eyes, you are battling this natural change in your vision.

Combating Presbyopia
Many times people purchase a pair of reading glasses to use whenever they need to combat the effects of presbyopia. Reading glasses provide a small change in vision, but just enough to allow people to read items held more closely to their eyes. Every year, over 30 million pairs of reading glasses are sold in the US. Some of these glasses are full lenses and some are half lenses, allowing people to look over the top of the glasses to see objects in the distance.

Eye exercises can be another way to combat the effects of presbyopia by strengthening the muscles around the eyeball. Many people exercise various parts of their bodies to combat the effects of aging and to keep their body in the best shape possible. It only makes sense to add exercises for the eyes, in order to combat the effects of aging in this area as well, and to keep your eyes as healthy as possible.