How your child sees the world may have an effect on how successful he will be later on in life, as experts say that the sense of sight is very important to a child’s mental development. "Vision is very important in a child’s learning capacity. Activities such as reading and exploring the world around him is one of the best ways to learn," explains Dr. Mary Rose Teodoro, an ophthalmologist at the Makati Medical Center.

At birth, your baby’s beautiful eyes can have fuzzy, hazy vision, seeing objects better when they are up close. They can focus for about 8 to 15 inches away from their face, meaning they can recognize when mom holds him for feeding time. From 2 months onwards, he learns to differentiate colors, and by about 5 months, he should be able to focus and track even small objects. From then on, there will be no stopping your little dynamo from using his eyes to see, read, watch, and learn.

But there are several factors that may hinder your child’s normal visual development. Dr. Teodoro says one of the most common is a condition called lazy eye or amblyopia. She adds that it is one of the top causes of blindness, but it is easily detectible and treatable. According to Dr. Alan Greene, in his web article on amblyopia at dr.greene.com, Amblyopia is the loss of vision caused when a clear image of the world is not available on the retina during key periods of development. Lazy eye is a result of understimulation. It may occur if the child is cross-eyed and one eye deviates to the side and isn’t used as much, or with astigmatism, where one eye sees more clearly than the other.

Another eye problem that occurs with your children is the presence of cataracts. According to Dr. Teodoro, babies, and not just lolos and lolas can have this condition, which clouds the eye lens and results in hazy vision. Some children can inherit cataracts, while others develop cataracts if their mothers contracted Rubella early on in the pregnancy.

These conditions are easily detectible with eye exams at a child’s crucial stages of visual development. Dr. Teodoro advises parents to bring their child for eye tests before 6 months of age, at 3 years old, and before he enters preschool. "Children rarely complain if they are having vision problems. It is really best to schedule them for regular checkups," she says.

Then there's one particular eye problem that experts are looking into preventing for future generations. Macular degeneration is what takes away lolo’s razor sharp vision by the time he hits his 60s.

Experts say that aside from poor diet and genetics, constant prolonged exposure to harmful light rays can cause a person’s vision to decline as he grows older. The thing with light exposure is that damage sets in during childhood.

Until recently, the main concern was with the sun’s ultraviolet rays, but experts are now also advising parents to protect children’s eyes against blue light.

Dr. Teodoro explains that blue light is one of the color wavelengths that we get when we filter white light through a prism. "Unlike UV light that comes mainly from sunlight, we get blue light even from ambient light, such as your fluorescent lighting. We actually use blue light as a laser," she adds. The lens in children’s eyes is clearer and has lesser defenses against the damage caused by UV and blue light. And while UV rays may be blocked by wearing proper eye gear, blue light cannot be filtered from the outside.

When a child’s eyes are exposed to blue light, an oxidation takes place in the retina which causes free radicals to form and results in lesions on the retina. Over the years, this may lead to loss of vision.

As with many health problems, good nutrition is key to fighting off the blue light menace. One important nutrient that has been found to prevent eye damage caused by blue light is lutein, which can be found right at the areas of the eye’s light receptors where most of the blue light damage happens. It works both as a filter and as an antioxidant.

To get that lutein boost, Dr. Teodoro advises including dark green leafies such as broccoli, spinach, and kangkong in the diet.

But for younger children who may dislike these healthy eats, fortified food products can help. Wyeth recently announced that Progress Gold, a milk supplement for children 1 year old and above has been fortified with lutein, to help ensure proper protection for children’s developing eyes.