Pseudostrabismus refers to eyes that appear to be turned, but are actually straight. This is quite a common condition in babies and young children due to facial structures. Known as “prominent epicanthal folds”, the wide bridge of the nose and the inner folds of the eyelid skin on the nose-side of the eye contribute to the appearance by covering the “whites” of the eye. This is often more noticeable in of East Asian ethnicities, where the lower fold of the upper eyelid gives the eyes a relatively narrower and almond-like appearance.
Vision is our most precious sense, yet an infant’s vision is much less developed at birth than their other senses, such as smell. Therefore, it is vital that parents and caregivers provide the right environment to help their baby’s visual system to develop and mature. Many parents worry about motor development of their child, yet most don’t realise that there is also very important motor development occurring in the eye muscles too.
It shouldn’t be surprising that a baby’s eye colour is a very popular conversation topic with parents. “Most precious sense”, “windows to the soul”, and “the eyes have one language everywhere” are age-old quotes that indicate our long fascination with eyes.
I was shocked, yet not overly surprised recently to discover there are now devices that you can insert your iPhone or iPod into, to ensure that your baby does not wreck it whilst playing with it! Certainly, we cannot ignore the impact that small screen devices now play in our world. We communicate on them, we organise our lives on them, we socialise on them, and we can be entertained by them! But should we be allowing our children, toddlers and yes, even infants to play with them too?
At Harmony Vision , we are often asked, “when should I get my kids eyes checked?” Here are some guidelines.