1.     What are these terms?

‘Myopia’ means ‘far sightedness’. In short, there is difficult in seeing for distance and minus numbered glasses are required for correction.

‘Hyperopia’ means plus numbered glasses are required for correction

‘Astigmatism’ means one of the axis of the eye is either steeper or flatter than the others and cylindrical glasses are required for correction

‘Presbyopia’ means difficulty in seeing for near which generally happens after the age of 40 years

2.     Why do I have Myopia/Hyperopia/Astigmatism??

Well, your eye is a scientific marvel. A lot of parts have to function well to enable you to see clearly.

The refractive error you get depends mainly on three factors

1. Length of the eyeball: Longer: Myopia, Shorter: Hyperopia
2. Shape of the cornea: Steeper: Myopia, Flatter: Hyperopia
3. Hardness of your lens: Harder: Myopia

When these factors are in sync, you do not need glasses. If any of these is affected, you may need glasses.

3.     I have myopia, can my number go away be eating certain type of foods, doing certain type of exercises?

Well, Myopia certainly does not go away by eating certain type of foods. Yes, doing certain exercises are known to temporally reduce the number. However, there are no proven methods to do the same.

Myopia has been linked to lack of outdoor activity and long hours of near work like playing video games/working on the computer.

So, if you have Myopia, it might be a good idea to do away with these indoor activities and participate in some outdoor ones!

4.     What are the other options open to me other than glasses?

If you have Myopia and minimal Hyperopia, contact lens are available. Generally soft contact lens are the best. You have daily, monthly and yearly disposable contact lens.

If you have Astigmatism, toric contact lens are available and in certain cases like Keratoconus, rigid gas permeable contact lens are available.

5.     Is there any surgery by which I can get my number removed?

Nowadays, LASIK surgery is available for correction of Myopia upto 10 D and Hyperopia upto 4 D.

There are certain criteria to be met before you are eligible for the surgery

1. Your age should be more than 18 years
2. Your number should have been stable for the past 1 year
3. Your corneal thickness has to be adequate
4. Your corneal shape should be normal
5. Your Retina should be normal. If there are weak area, they may need Laser before your surgery for number correction