Presbyopia, also known as tired eyes, is a refractive defect caused by the loss of elasticity of the crystalline lens, where the natural lens of our eye, which allows us to focus images at different distances, is affected, causing a decrease in the focus of objects.
This condition causes greater difficulty in reading or viewing images up close, showing objects with little clarity. An example to know if we suffer from presbyopia would be reading the labels of any product, where the font size, being small, makes the eye have to focus better to read it.
Why does it occur? Using the lens of our eye as a comparison, it can be compared to a camera lens, where when taking a photo, the lens helps us focus on the object and see it more clearly. Our lens is responsible for helping us focus on nearby objects, having a varied shape that adapts to the proximity of the object we are looking at. This condition usually occurs in people between the ages of 40 and 45, but is rare in young people, as it is caused by aging itself, causing the natural degeneration of the eye.
How can it be prevented? Presbyopia cannot be prevented because it is linked to the degenerative process of the eye. Like other parts of our body, it evolves with age. Therefore, from a certain point on, we all suffer from presbyopia and, in fact, it affects more than 90% of people over 45 years of age.
It is therefore important to have your vision checked regularly (annual check-ups), especially after the age of 40, when the usual symptoms of tired eyesight usually appear. At this age, other eye diseases that are common in older people also begin to develop. Presbyopia develops gradually. After the age of 40, you may notice the following signs and symptoms for the first time:
1. A tendency to hold reading material farther away to see the letters more clearly
2. Blurred vision at normal reading distance
3. Eye strain or headaches after reading or doing detailed work
4. Difficulty focusing on objects at close distance (less than 1 m)
5. Need to move the book, cell phone, etc. away to be able to see better
6. Feeling that the letters in a text are “dancing” or blurry
7. Headache when staring at something while reading for a long time
8. Eye fatigue (redness, dry eyes, itching, gritty sensation, tearing, etc.), especially at the end of the day or in low light conditions
We may notice that these symptoms get worse if you are tired or in a poorly lit place.
As presbyopia progresses, it often becomes more bothersome and intensifies. In other cases, it becomes an “intermittent” process. After the first symptoms, some patients seem to improve and regain their ability to focus, only to get worse again later.
When you feel symptoms of this kind, it is best to go to your ophthalmologist, who will carefully assess your condition. Although presbyopia cannot be cured, there are several methods that, as with other refractive defects ( hyperopia , myopia , astigmatism ), help alleviate the difficulty in focusing, such as the use of glasses that help correct the lens.
The glasses Progressive lenses are the most common option and different types of lenses can be used depending on the needs of each patient. It is common that, between the ages of 40 and 60, a regular change of prescription is normally necessary due to the development of tired eyes. Glasses with progressive lenses are a good alternative for presbyopia or tired eyes, but do you want to know which progressive lens is best and how to avoid adaptation problems? The types of glasses that are recommended are:
– Monofocal : These are only intended to improve close vision and are usually initially used to perform specific precision tasks, such as reading or sewing.
– Bifocals: combine distance vision (upper area of the lens) and close vision (lower area).
– Occupational: In this case, the upper part of the glass is used for vision at intermediate distances and the lower part for close distances. They are especially suitable for people who spend many hours in front of the computer.
– Progressive: they progressively change the graduation to correct both near, intermediate and far vision.
For this reason, as reported by the newspaper El Confidencial in its article “They discover that presbyopia cannot be prevented: goodbye to the myth of not wearing glasses”, referring to the use of glasses in presbyopia, there is still no definitive cure for this, but the most appropriate way to alleviate its effects is to wear glasses. Although at first it was considered to delay the use of glasses in this type of illness, studies have shown that their use both in the early stages of the manifestation of the illness helps prevent it from developing over time, leading to greater difficulty when focusing on objects.
Dr. Julio Maset gives a series of tips for detecting and treating this vision problem. Firstly, be alert to the appearance of any symptoms. That is, difficulties in seeing close-up images or reading, as well as eye strain or headaches after performing prolonged tasks involving close vision, may be symptoms of presbyopia.
It is also recommended to adopt good habits when working with the computer, remembering that it is normal to feel eye fatigue, for which it is recommended to take visual breaks every twenty minutes, pay attention to aspects such as brightness, screen position and reading distance, enlarging the font size on the screen and maintaining good lubrication of the ocular surface, using artificial tear solutions.
Other tips include using the appropriate optical correction, visiting the ophthalmologist from time to time (especially after age 40), and getting the right information if you decide to have surgery.
For all these reasons, if you have symptoms of tired eyes, such as difficulty focusing on objects or product labels when you go shopping, do not rule out the use of glasses, since their use will help the lens to maintain its youth (even if you are already a few years old and cannot fight against it) and prevent it from getting worse and ending up causing greater ailments such as those that it brings with it.