Millennials worst offenders for eye health

Nearly half (49%) of the more than 1,000 Australians that participated in the consumer survey said they were most afraid of losing their eyesight, while they also rated blindness in the top three potential impacts to their quality-of-life. Despite this, only half of the respondents reported to have had their eyes checked in the last 12 months and more than half (61%) set aside an eye exam for their annual car maintenance service.The results suggested that millennials (25–34-year-olds) are the worst offenders in terms of caring for their eyes, with just 30% having visited an optometrist in the past year. NSW, ACT and Tasmanian residents also fall behind the rest of Australia when it comes to eye health checks, with less than half (42%) on average visiting an optometrist in the past 12 months.{{quote-a:r-w:400-I:2-Q:“The number of people with vision impairment in NSW/ACT alone is estimated to be 122,000, and we anticipate around 50,000 people with sight loss want or need a service from us.”-WHO:Dale Cleaver, Guide Dogs NSW/ACT}}Two of the most common fears associated with blindness were the loss independence (69%) and being unable to see the faces of loved ones and family (66%).The research was funded in part to raise awareness for the importance of Guide Dogs, with CEO of the NSW/ACT branch Mr Dale Cleaver pointing out that insufficient support and funding meant 75% of Australians who needed a Guide Dog did not have one.“The number of people with vision impairment in NSW/ACT alone is estimated to be 122,000, and we anticipate around 50,000 people with sight loss want or need a service from us,” he said.“It takes more than $35,000 to breed, raise and train a Guide Dog and we also continue to provide ongoing support for our clients throughout the life of their Guide Dog. Our goal is to make sure every person that needs a Guide Dog has one.”Guide Dogs NSW/ACT receives less than 3% of its funding from government and is instead reliant on community support.Other notable statistics revealed by the research include; Less than half of those surveyed (43%) understood that factors like family history, age or an eye infection from could cause sight loss; nearly two-thirds (64%) attributed sight loss to degenerative diseases, and disregard other factors such as poor diet and smoking; nearly a quarter (24%) of respondents knew someone who had lost their independence due to sight loss.Image courtesy: Flickr | CommScope