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We filed into the gymnasium one by one that musty smell of children on the brink of needing deodorant wafting through the air. The school nurse and some volunteers from the high school started splitting us up into groups to stand on the pieces of tape on the floor in front of the multiple eye charts.

If you are over 40 and have difficulty seeing close up, you probably have a common age-related condition called presbyopia which is when the eye’s natural lens loses the ability to focus on close objects.

When people think of workplace dangers to the eyes, it is usually machinery, chemicals or construction materials that come to mind. However, a growing danger to the eyes is one that may be less obvious – exposure to blue light from digital devices, television and computer screens and artificial lighting.

Conjunctivitis, also called pink eye, is one of the most frequently seen eye diseases, especially in kids. It can be caused by viruses, bacteria or even allergies to pollen, chlorine in swimming pools, and ingredients in cosmetics, or other irritants, which touch the eyes.

This question can be answered simply: no contact lenses should not hurt. If they do, you should talk to your eye doctor as soon as possible. Contacts may feel a little uncomfortable as your eyes adjust, particularly when you first get them, but they should never hurt. This feeling of discomfort should go away relatively quickly — typically within a few hours as your eyes become acclimated.

Your eyes are constantly at work for you, playing a vital role as you navigate through each day. As May is healthy vision month, here are some things to keep in mind:

The frequency with which children should get their eyes checked is much different than what is recommended for an adult. Because children’s eyes grow rapidly in the first three years of life, eye exams during this time are crucial to make sure the eyes are developing the way they should.

1979: The year of the walkman, of Michael Jackson’s Off the Wall album, and the first female prime minister was elected in the UK. More notably, 1979 was also the last total solar eclipse visible by the contiguous United States. So maybe not a once in a lifetime opportunity (I still pull out my walkman from time to time), but still an exciting memorable event!

Age-related macular degeneration is a serious condition that can threaten your vision and general well-being. Characterized by the deterioration of the central area of the retina called the macula which is responsible for focused vision, the disease gradually reduces your central vision.

As the leading cause of blindness worldwide, glaucoma has earned the nickname “The Sneak Thief of Sight”. This is because often there are either no symptoms or a sudden onset of serious symptoms that can quickly lead to vision loss if not treated.

The hormonal fluctuations experienced during pregnancy can cause many unexpected changes in your body, including your eyes and vision. Most of these changes are temporary and will return to normal once you give birth.

Eye color is a hereditary trait that depends on the genes of both parents, as well as a little bit of mystery. The color of the eye is based on the pigments in the iris, which is a colored ring of muscle located at the center of the eye (around the pupil) that helps to control the amount of light that comes into your eye.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of vision loss for adults in the U.S. With 1 in 3 patients at high risk for developing AMD, our eye doctors have started using the most advanced technology available to screen for key risk factors.

Have you ever wondered what your eyes do when you finally close them after a long day of visual processing and stimulation? Let’s take a closer look at what happens behind your closed lids when your head hits the pillow.

October has arrived and that means many people are already starting to plan for upcoming costume parties and trick-or-treating for the Halloween season.

The American Optometric Association, or the AOA, recommends that babies get their first eye exam between the ages of 6-12 months of age. This isn’t just to see if your child needs glasses, it also serves as a wellness visit to evaluate how healthy the development is of your child’s eyes.

The New Year is coming and many people include healthier eating and exercise in their resolutions for the year ahead. Well other than weight loss and overall health and disease prevention, a healthy diet and regular exercise can protect your eyes and your vision.

There is a growing and thriving market in the eye care industry of prescription glasses sold at massively discounted prices. Marketing for these companies seems to flood television and radio with commercials. You’re likely to find dozens of colorful flyers stuffed inside your mailbox with all the other coupons and advertisements.

90%! That’s the number of sports eye injuries that studies show can be prevented using proper eye protection. Yet most sports leagues don’t require protective eyewear as part of their uniform or safety requirements.

After the age of 50 most people will eventually be diagnosed with cataracts. Cataracts are when the natural crystalline lens of the eyes become clouded, causing vision impairment that can not be corrected by glasses or contact lenses.

What’s it like to be color blind? Contrary to what the name implies, color blindness usually does not actually mean that you don’t see any color, but rather that you have difficulty perceiving or distinguishing between certain colors.

Last week, people in South America, Europe, North Africa, and parts of Asia and the Middle East saw a solar eclipse. As you may have heard, looking directly at a solar eclipse is very dangerous for your eyes and vision.

In honor of Sjogren’s Awareness month, eye care providers are helping to spread the word to increase awareness about this hard-to-diagnose disease. Sjogren’s is a systemic autoimmune disorder that can affect the whole body.

Glaucoma, which refers to a group of eye diseases that damage the optic nerve, is often called ‘the silent thief of sight’. This nickname evolved because the disease creeps up unnoticed in its early stages, causing no pain and few, if any symptoms.

There have been a lot of videos going viral lately of color blind people “seeing color” for the first time using specialized glasses. The emotional reactions of amazement, shock and joy even lead some to break down into tears.

Spring is in the air. But along with the beauty of the blooming flowers and budding trees, comes allergy season. The high pollen count and allergens floating in the fresh spring air can certainly wreak havoc on the comfort level of those suffering from allergies, causing an otherwise nature-loving individual to seek respite indoors.

Eye charts of different variations have become a standard in vision screenings and eye exams. One of the most familiar charts associated with vision is the Snellen eye chart, designed by Dutch ophthalmologist Hermann Snellen in 1862 to measure visual acuity- how well you can see at various distances.

True Eye Experts of New Tampa are thrilled to be hosting our annual Fall Trunk Show! We host this event every year in appreciation of our existing and new patients to the practice. We will be having eye wear stylists from Ray Ban, Costa del Mar, Tory Burch on site with lots of new and exciting inventory to choose from.

State Eyewear is a relatively new company that is doing something completely unheard of these days in the eyewear industry. They are making extremely high-quality eyeglass frames, and they are doing it in America.

As Halloween approaches and costume planning gets more serious, many consider the use of novelty or costume contact lenses as a way to add that extra flair.

Nerf guns or blasters come in a remarkable number of shapes and sizes and have become incredibly popular for use in the home and even in large scale “Nerf Wars”.

To put it simply, pregnancy changes your body. This goes well beyond developing a baby bump, and amidst all the sudden changes, we’ve found that new and expectant mothers are often unaware of the effect their pregnancy can have on their eye health.

Every good pair of eyes eventually gets old and with age comes a condition called presbyopia. Presbyopia, which usually begins to set in some time around 40, occurs when the lens of the eye begins to stiffen, making near vision (such as reading books, menus, and computer screens) blurry.

We all experience the occasional eyelid twitch, which is when the muscle of the eyelid spasms involuntarily. Usually, it comes and goes without intervention and while sure, it can be irritating, is a twitching eyelid ever something to be concerned about?

Eye charts of different variations have become a standard in vision screenings and eye exams. One of the most familiar charts associated with vision is the Snellen eye chart, designed by Dutch ophthalmologist Hermann Snellen in 1862 to measure visual acuity- how well you can see at various distances.

A stye (known by eye doctors as a hordeolum) is an infection of an oil gland which forms a pimple-like bump on the base of the eyelid or within the eyelid itself. Styes can be uncomfortable, causing swelling, pain, redness, discomfort and sometimes excessive tearing or blurred vision if it is large enough to distort the front surface of the eyes.

The most well-known part of a comprehensive eye exam is the basic vision test. When you have a general vision test, one of the main conditions the eye care practitioner is checking for is a refractive error. A refractive error means there is an abnormality in the shape of the eye, changing the eye’s ability to focus light directly onto the retina.

Light sensitivity, also known as photophobia, is a condition in which bright light – either natural sunlight or artificial light – can cause significant discomfort, pain and intolerance.

The term “pink eye” is a commonly used term for conjunctivitis, an infection and inflammation of the thin membrane that covers the entire front of the eye. Pink eye can lead to serious complications if not treated and is highly contagious.

The eye chart just might be the most recognized symbol of an eye doctor’s office. Almost everyone has had to read letters from one at some point in their life whether at the eye doctor’s office, your pediatrician or school nurse’s office, or even the digital eye chart at the DMV.

To answer this question it is important to establish that there are two different kinds of “daily” contacts. There are daily disposable contact lenses, and then there are daily extended use contact lenses. There are major differences in the way that these lenses are designed and how long they can safely be used for.

Waking up in the morning is hard enough, but for those who wake up with burning eyes, it is even worse! Your eyes will be itchy, bloodshot, swollen, and of course, burning. This terrible morning sensation can be caused by dry eye syndrome, an allergic reaction, blepharitis, pink eye, or even a foreign substance inside the eye.

The short answer is yes. Have you ever left the pool and felt a slight burning in your eyes? Or glanced in the mirror after a swim only to find your eyes were bright red? That is the result of chlorinated water.

At this time of year when the sun sets early, many people are affected by night blindness. Night blindness or nyctalopia refers to difficulty seeing at night or in poor or dim lighting situations.

Nowadays, dry eyes are relatively common. Chances are that besides yourself, you also know others who suffer from the irritating symptoms of dry eye syndrome. However, the cause of dry eye varies widely.

For some people choosing a new pair of glasses is exciting, while for others it can feel overwhelming. Whether or not you are longing for a new pair, how do you know you if you actually NEED to update your glasses? This is a great question and the answer depends on a few things: