Having stable visual health is essential in maintaining your general well-being and every-day efficiency. This is why Alderwood Optical and Canyon Park Vision Clinic works to spread awareness about how your eyes work and why it is so important to take good care of them. In today’s post, your expert eye doctor explains how the vision process works:
How Your Eyes Work
When you look at an object, light rays bounce off the object and pass through your cornea, a transparent, smooth, dome-shaped structure covering the front of your eyes. Light will then enter the pupil, a small opening that can expand or contract depending on how much light is being let it. Your iris, the colored part of your eyes, regulates the size of your pupil.
The lens, the clear structure behind the iris, focuses light on the retina. It flattens when you look at distant objects and curves when you view things up close. Once the light reaches the retina, light-sensing cells, also referred to as photoreceptors, take over.
There are two major classifications of photoreceptors: cones, and rods. Cones are located in the central region of the retina (macula), and provide sharp central visual acuity, as well as intact color and detail recognition. Rods ensure peripheral visual access, while also enabling you to see clearly in dim light and in motion. Both cones and rods convert light into nerve impulses, which the optic nerve transports to the brain for image translation.
Ways to Preserve Your Eyesight
Your visual and neurological systems need to work in tandem with one another to produce your sense of sight. While your eyes detect light ray patterns across your visual field, your brain converts them into pictures that you actually “see.” This is why your dependable eye doctor usually includes tests that evaluate how well the two organs work together during a comprehensive eye exam.
In addition to eye exams, we also recommend eating eye-friendly foods, exercising regularly, and wearing proper eyewear to safeguard your vision. For more information about your visual system process, call us at (425) 771-8472 for Alderwood Optical or (425) 485-0430 for Canyon Park Vision Clinic. You may also complete our form to request an appointment. We serve Bothell, Kirkland, Redmond and nearby areas in Washington.