"Eating carrots will improve your eyesight"

False. Carrots are rich in Vitamin A, which is important for a well-balanced diet. However, eating carrots or any other food that is high in Vitamin A will not improve your vision. In fact, eating large amounts of Vitamin A or other vitamins can be very harmful.

"The best way to cure a black eye is to put a steak on it"

False. Steak does nothing for a black eye. What you should do is to apply ice cold compresses to the eye and see an ophthalmologist (eye doctor) immediately.

"Sitting too close to the television will hurt your eyes"

False. Children have a greater ability to focus up close without strain than adults and often develop the habit of sitting close to the television. Children and adults who are nearsighted may sit close to enable them to see the picture more clearly. There is no evidence that sitting close to the television will damage your eyes. Eyes may become tired from sitting too close for long periods, if the light in the room is too dim, or if the picture screen is out of focus. If your eyes become tired, give them a rest and check the room lighting and the picture focus.

"Wearing contact lenses will prevent nearsightedness from getting worse"

False. There is no evidence that wearing contact lenses will either correct nearsightedness or prevent it from getting worse.

"Children usually outgrow crossed eyes"

False. To avoid seeing double, a child with crossed eyes will use only one eye at a time. The unused or crossed eye may never develop good vision unless the child is forced to use it, usually by patching the good eye. If you think your child has crossed eyes, he or she should be examined by an ophthalmologist. It is generally best to treat crossed eyes as soon as possible.

"Children do not need eye examinations until they are in school"

False. It is recommended that every child's eyes be examined regularly starting at birth. Some eye problems such as crossed eyes or amblyopia (lazy eye) can result in permanent loss of sight in the affected eye if not detected and treated before the child is five or six years old.

"Cataracts can not be removed until they are ripe"

False. A cataract can be removed when it decreases vision enough to be a handicap to the patient, at any age. How much decrease in vision is disabling varies from person to person.

"Cataracts can be removed with a laser"

False. A cataract can only be removed by surgery. A cataract cannot grow back after it is removed. However, sometimes after cataract surgery a membrane inside the eye becomes cloudy causing vision to decrease. An opening in the membrane can be made using a laser.

"Eyes can be transplanted"

False. It is not possible to transplant a whole eye. The eye is connected to the brain by a small nerve called the optic nerve. If this nerve is cut it cannot be reconnected, making it impossible to remove the eye and replace it with another one. The cornea, the clear covering on the front part of the eye, has been successfully transplanted for many years. Some people incorrectly confuse a cornea transplant with an eye transplant.

__NOTOC__

Category:Fun