Vision Loss

Eye exercise programs that claim to improve vision walk the sometimes-fine, sometimes-chasmic line between science and folk remedy. Though it’d be nice to knock another DIY health program out of the ballpark of credibility, it seems as if the jury’s still out.

Seeking to provide a remedy to the fact that refractive errors, including farsightedness and nearsightedness, develop out of a combination of hereditary and circumstantial factors, eye exercise programs purport to both prevent and fix poor vision. In theory, these exercises are supposed to strengthen the eye muscles, improve eye coordination, and enhance the flexibility of the eye muscles.

Some of these programs even encourage vision enhancement and maintenance through practicing mantra-based personal affirmations.

The fact that many of these eye exercise programs, which basically consist of a booklet (and occasional snazzy multimedia CD or VHS/DVD), are advertised primarily over the internet and radio commercials doesn’t lend them any additional credibility. Claims that these simple exercises – some of which are called “tromboning” and “clock rotations” (and don’t forget those affirming mantras!) – can do what complex surgical procedures like LASIK can do seem, if anything, outlandish.

While these programs are unproven at best, there are still thousands of consumers buying into these exercises. They haven’t been proven to be harmful to anyone’s vision (yet), but their lack of proven results have put a hurt on people’s wallets and, most likely, their expectations.