Scheduling Your Eye Exam

Even if your vision is perfect, you should have a baseline eye exam at age forty, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology. Your eye doctor can detect even small changes in your vision and eye health by comparing later eye-exam results to the baseline exam.

Don't wait until you're forty if you have diabetes or high blood pressure, if you are taking steroids, if you have a family history of eye disorders, or if you're having problems with your eyes. Schedule your baseline exam right away.

After doing your baseline exam, the doctor will let you know when you should come back. The American Academy of Ophthalmology's recommended eye-exam schedule is:

. every two to four years until you're sixty-five
. every one or two years after age sixty-five
. any time you're having problems with your eyes