Message from Councilmember Ellen Zimmerman | September 9, 2021
With our students returning Back to School this week throughout Scotch Plains, there’s been plenty of focus on school supply shopping and the return to in-person learning.
It is also time to ensure a comprehensive eye exam for our young scholars to ensure they are as successful as possible in the classroom and on the sports field.
Good eyesight and eye health are especially important for the development of young children. As parents, we need to stay on top of vision concerns because – let’s face it – our children may not always recognize when they are struggling.
Statistics show one out of 20 children between the ages of 3 and 5 has a serious eye problem that could result in permanent vision impairment if left untreated. Yet, 4 out of 5 preschoolers in this country do not receive routine eye screening.
That’s why a comprehensive eye exam should be part of your backpack for back-to-school prep. A kid-friendly optometrist can detect common refractive errors like nearsightedness, farsightedness, and astigmatism, as well as more severe eye conditions like amblyopia (lazy eye), strabismus (crossed eyes), ptosis (drooping of the eyelid), and color deficiency (color blindness).
Also, as we begin the fall sports season in Scotch Plains, keeping your child’s eyes safe is another key component. Many don’t realize that eye injuries are the leading cause of vision loss for children.
There are about 42,000 sports-related eye injuries every year in America, and children suffer most. You can help prevent your child from being one of the more than 12 million children who suffer from vision impairment. Ideally, all children should wear protective eyewear while playing sports, and we should also make sure to buy age-appropriate toys without those sharp or protruding parts.
Join me in starting off this school year in Scotch Plains on the right foot, scheduling a comprehensive eye exam for your students and taking safety measures to ensure their eyes are free from injury. There are many experienced eye care specialists in Scotch Plains, so I hope you make an appointment soon.
Together, let’s not lose sight of the role healthy eyes play in the success of our students.
