Healthy babies are born with the ability to see; however, the ability to focus and move their eyes appropriately is acquired later in life. The development of a baby's eyesight is discussed in this article.
When do a baby's eyes begin to change?
When a baby's eyes begin to work together more effectively in the first few months, their eyes begin to develop.
Other milestones in a baby's eyesight development occur around 4 months, 5-8 months, and 9-12 months.
When do babies begin recognize color?
At roughly 5 months of age, babies are thought to be able to see color clearly. Their color vision may not be as sharp as an adult's, but it will have improved significantly since they were a month old and couldn't differentiate between comparable tones.
Around the age of two months, an infant begins to determine between similar tones.
Understanding how your baby's vision develops
It's important to consider your baby's vision development since our ability to withstand visual information is critical to understand the world around us, and vision impairments in babies can cause developmental delays.
The following are the many visual milestones in a baby's development:
4 months old newborn
The environment around newborn babies is out of focus, and they can only see objects that are 8 to 10 inches away from them.
Newborn eyes will begin to work together better in the first several months, although they may not yet be able to coordinate efficiently.
In most cases, it is typical for one eye to wander or for both eyes to appear crossed. If you observe wandering or crossed eyes on a regular basis, you should consult a pediatrician.
A baby's hand-eye coordination develops around the age of three months. You could watch their eyes following a moving object while they reach out with their hands to touch it.
Babies aged 5 to 8 months
The eyesight of a baby will grow considerably during the next 5 to 8 months. They will learn new abilities and develop depth awareness in order to assess how close or far away items are in their environment.
This will increase their hand-eye coordination, and many babies will begin to move around the age of eight months, which will help their hand-eye coordination even more.
During this time, a baby's color vision will also improve.
Babies aged 9 to 12 months
A baby's eyesight will be fully developed by the time he or she is a year old, and they will be able to see things clearly, judge distances accurately, and focus on fast-moving objects.
When should your child's eyes be examined?
During a baby's first few years of life, he or she will likely have a number of routine eye exams. A newborn will get a physical check-up 72 hours after birth, and an eye examination will follow when your infant is 6-8 weeks old.
Until your child is two years old, you will be offered health and development checks to ensure that their development is on track. You will be asked if you have any concerns about your child's vision during these reviews, and an eye exam may be required.
You will be asked if you have any concerns about your child's eyesight during these assessments, and if required, an eye exam will be scheduled.
When your child starts school, they may undergo an eye test around the age of 4 or 5 to discover and treat any abnormalities early on. A vision screening is an eye exam that tests to see if one or both eyes have vision problems.
Problems with the baby's vision
During an eye exam, a child's or baby's vision can be checked for a variety of vision disorders. These are some of them:
Myopia
Short-sightedness is also known as myopia. Items in the distant appear fuzzy while nearby objects appear clear in this frequent eye disease.
Hyperopia
Long-sightedness is another name for hyperopia. It occurs when adjacent objects appear out of focus while distant objects appear clear.
Amblyopia (lazy eye)
When one eye's vision does not develop normally, it is known as amblyopia. It is difficult to detect in newborns and young children since it usually has no evident symptoms.
Astigmatism
Astigmatism, like myopia and hyperopia, is a common cause of fuzzy vision. Astigmatism causes the eye to like a rugby ball. Light is focused in various spots in the eye as a result of this, which can induce headaches and eye strain.
Cataracts in children
Congenital cataracts are a term used to describe cataracts that develop in children. Cataracts show as foggy areas in the lens of the eye and can be present from birth or shortly after.
Developmental, infantile, or juvenile cataracts are cataracts that occur in older newborns or children.
Cataracts can damage one or both eyes in youngsters, and the foggy areas in the lens can become larger, causing poor vision. 'Wobbling eyes' and a squint, in which the eyes point in various directions, are further signs.
Strabismus (squint)
When the eyes squint in different directions, it's called a squint. This can happen to anyone at any age, although it is more common in young children. Squints in babies come and go and are usually nothing to be concerned about. If your child is older than 3 months and has a squint that comes and goes or is present all of the time, you should seek medical help.
Color blindness
Color blindness is more common in boys than in girls, and it causes difficulty seeing colors and discriminating between them. It is normally present from birth, however it can sometimes appear later in life.
Symptoms of an eye issues
The following are some of the signs and symptoms of a baby's eye problem:
- Excessive tearing might be a sign of clogged tear ducts.
- Light sensitivity – this could be an indication of high eye pressure.
- Eyelids that are red or crusty are generally an indication of an eye infection.
- A white pupil may suggest the presence of eye cancer.
- Eyes that are continually wandering could suggest a problem with eye muscle control.
If your child's vision is causing you concern, you should consult an optician to discover the source of the problem.
Conclusion
While infants are born with the ability to see, their vision develops as they grow and learn new skills. Your baby's development will be aided if you interact with them. You may assist your infant digest visual information by talking to them and pointing out things you see, taking them to fresh and exciting areas, and identifying objects when you speak to them.
Make sure you pay attention to any signs or symptoms that could signal a visual impairment, and seek medical advice if you have any concerns. Let’s meet our optometrists for your baby’s eye checking with further information and more advises.