Important Facts You Didn’t Know About Your Eyes

We usually don’t realize it, but most of us tend to take our eyesight for granted, especially if we don’t need prescription glasses. So as a reminder why you should be grateful for this wonderful gift of sight, let’s take a look at these five important facts you may or may not have known about your eyes, many of which might leave you surprised.\r \r 1. 20:20 Vision Is Not the Best Vision You Can Have\r \r Contrary to popular belief, 20:20 vision is not really an indicator of having perfect vision. It simply refers to what the average adult should be able to see. In other words, when you imagine a typical eye test chart, the 20:20 vision is most likely only the line second from the bottom. And the characters below that line are even smaller than 20:20 vision, meaning that if you’re able to see it, you actually possess 20:16 vision. So wrap things up, 20:20 vision is basically the average vision, and not the absolute best.\r \r 2. You See With Your Brain and Not Your Eyes\r \r Technically, we don’t really see with our eyes. What it actually does is collect all the necessary information in our environment and then pass it on to the brain via the optic nerve. From there, the visual cortex portion of the brain makes sense of the information by piecing everything together so we could “see” the final picture. Our brain also corrects the raw info by flipping it right side up due to the fact that our eyes “sees” everything upside down.\r \r 3. The Lens In Your Eye is Quicker Than Any Camera Lens\r \r It is thanks to the lens in our eyes that we are able to look at objects within various distances with such great ease. Whenever you are looking at something, whether it’s really close or far away, the lenses in our eyes immediately adapt to whatever you’re focusing on without you even realizing it. Now let’s compare that to how a camera lens takes a few seconds to focus between one distance and another. Doesn’t this put into perspective just how amazing our eyes are?\r \r 4. You Blink Approximately 15,000 Times Each Day\r \r Blinking is one of those semi-involuntary functions we possess, just like breathing, meaning that for the most part, we tend to do it without thinking, but can also consciously do so if we want to. But blinking is actually so much more crucial than most of us realize. This simple movement is how we help to remove any debris on the surface of our eyes, and even coat them with fresh tears which nourishes the eyes with oxygen and helps fight infections due to its antibacterial properties. When you think about it, blinking is like windscreen wipers on your car that helps you see clearly.\r \r 5. Everyone Needs Reading Glasses As They Get Older\r \r Remember how the lens helps our eyes focus on the environment? Well as we age, our ability to do so slowly decreases over time, starting anywhere between the ages of 43 and 50 years old. And this is something nearly 99% of the population will experience due to old age. The reason for this is that our eyes’ lens will start to change from flat to a more spherical shape, which makes it harder for us to focus like we used to. To combat this unavoidable issue, it's often recommended to get reading glasses in order to reduce the strain on your eyes.