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Don't be one of the thousands of parents every year who think, "I wish I had realized sooner that my child coudn't see properly!"

Did you know that early intervention in children's vision is the key to success?

• 80% of learning comes through vision.
• During the first year of life, and then again by age 3 or 4, each child needs a comprehensive eye exam.
• 6 months old is not too early.

Even though a school vision screening, nurse evaluation, or pediatrician screening is important, it doesn't take the place of a comprehensive eye exam by an eyecare professional. Some symptoms of an undetected vision problem include: decreased performance in school, aversion to reading, excessive blinking, eye rubbing, headache, or inability to see 3-D movies properly.

This could indicate conditions such as amblyopia (lazy eye), nearsightedness (myopia), astigmatism, or farsightedness (hyperopia) that can be corrected with glasses.

Surger might even be required for more serious conditions, such as esotropia, where the eye turns in, or exotropia where the eye turns out.

Although school screenings, nurses, and pediatricians are extremely valuable, they don't take the place of a comprehensive eye exam by an optometrist or ophthalmologist.

In fact, school screenings can give a false sense of security. There are visual skills necessary for reading that aren't diagnosed easily just by reading an eye chart. If a child frequently lose his or her place while reading, he or she may benefit from glasses, vision exercises, or therapy.

Vision Therapy involved training the eyes and brain to help alleviate issues that glasses alone can not.

A comprehensive exam can also reveal more serious threats to vision and health in children. A more rare, but life threatening condition is a fast growing eye tumor called retinoblastoma. The proximity of the eye to the brain makes fast intervention critical. This is a condition that parents might notice by looking at pictures and noticing a "white pupil."

Here are some resources to find out more information on children's vision--

• Your local eye care provider.
• Websites such as American Optometric Association.
• The InfantSEE program. It is a no cost public health program for early detection of optical issues in the first year of life.
• Don't Shake is the National center on Shaken Baby Syndrome
• American Academy of Pediatrics

Choosing a new pair of eyeglasses can be a daunting task.

Making a decision on what style glasses you will be wearing for the next year until your vision is checked again can be stressful. This is one of the many reasons opticians are here for you. In many ways, this may be the most important task for the optician, because keeping you happy with the way you look motivates you to wear your glasses daily.

Most people’s reaction is to play it safe with new glasses and stick with something relatively similar to what they are currently wearing.

While not necessarily a bad decision, this isn’t something opticians try to promote. Opticians often spend time meeting with frame representatives and browsing the Internet to keep up with the ever-changing trends in the world of eyeglass frames. And it’s a great feeling to successfully “update” your image with a new set of frames. Many patients are amazed at the difference a well-fit and -styled pair of glasses makes on their overall look.

There are many simple tips and tricks to consider when starting to browse for your next pair of frames.

The goal of this article is to improve your starting point when beginning to choose frames. That way, once the optician gets involved, the process is already well under way. Keep in mind that these are guidelines and “outside the box” thinking can be good as long as it fits within the required parameters of your prescription.

The first step is successfully identifying what face shape category you seem to fit into.

This image shows the most common face-shape categories. The following is a general guideline to help decide which frames will most likely appear to fit the best.

Oval - Oval faces are considered to be the “most versatile” because most frame styles and sizes fit well on this face type. As a general rule, and especially for oval faces, avoid choosing frames that extend past the widest part of your face. Stick with moderate-sized frames.

Upside Down Triangle - To even out the proportions of this face shape, choosing semi-rimless frames is always a positive. Less attention to the bottom half of the frame helps enhance the natural curves of this face shape. Frames that stay wide at the bottom and do not taper inward will also help even out this face.

Oblong - Being longer than it is wide, this face shape enjoys having larger frames on it. A lower bridge will help shorten the nose, and solid dark colors are a positive as well.

Square - A strong jaw line is the focus of this face shape, so to work with that, choosing smaller, narrow frames is a positive. Ovals and rounds work better than squares.

Diamond - Broad cheekbones are the focal point of this face shape. Being quite rare, the best style of frames to put on these faces are in the cat eye family. Following the face’s contours, flare-top frames, semi-rimless frames, and fun colors tend to work well with this shape.

Round - Rectangular frames work best on round faces. Wide bridges help separate the eyes and bring symmetry to the face. Make sure the frames are wider than they are deep.

Triangle - Cat eye frames work exceptionally well with this face shape also. Frames that have a lot of style and accents to the upper part of the frames and temples are a plus as this brings attention to the naturally narrow forehead.

Along with shapes and styles, some believe that certain colors work best with certain faces.

All people are considered to have either cool (blue) or warm (yellow) skin tones. Some people feel customers should stick within their family of coloring. Again this is only a recommendation since you should wear what you like. This is just strictly a guideline for those struggling to choose a frame for themselves. Based on experience, eye color can make a difference as well. People with lighter eyes tend to prefer lighter frame colors, and vice versa for people with darker eyes. Also, hair color can be considered. Patients with lighter or grey hair tend to shy away from darker frames unless looking to make a statement.

At the end of the day you have to choose what is most comfortable for you. Opticians’ suggestions and educated opinions can help steer you in the right direction. There is much to consider, but always keep in mind that comfort and functionality are the priorities.

Some people believe plastic or zyl frames are more comfortable than metal or semi-rimless. Having nose pads, metal frames feel “heavy” to some. Others cannot wear plastic due to oily skin. Plastic frames may slide as the day progresses so metal may be better suited.

Don’t be overwhelmed. Follow some simple guidelines, and remember to enjoy the process. There are infinite styles and options to get you seeing well and looking great. And while you’re considering lenses for your regular lenses, don’t forget to look for sunglasses frames!