Presbyopia symptom: A cause of blurred distance vision?

As I get older, I've noticed it takes longer for my eyes to adjust focus from doing close-up work to looking into the distance. As a result, distant object appear blurry at first. What causes this?

- Betsy / Virginia

Answer

The focusing problem you describe may be an early symptom of presbyopia, an age-related change in vision. Presbyopia is not the same as farsightedness. In presbyopia, your eyes gradually lose the ability to adjust to see clearly objects at different distances. The most common presbyopia symptom is blurry close-up vision. But you may also experience blurred vision when changing your focus from near to far objects.

If you're experiencing this problem after prolonged close-up work, such as reading or working at a computer, try resting your eyes by closing them for 20 to 30 seconds. This may help minimize the symptoms. If you don't normally wear prescription glasses, you may consider getting a pair of nonprescription reading glasses that can be used for close-up work.

If you're concerned about these vision changes, consult your eye doctor. An eye examination can identify any potential eye or vision problems that may require further evaluation and treatment.

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