Think About Your Eyes Reveals Barriers and Misconceptions about Healthy Vision

Monday, August 5 2019 | 15 h 39 min | News

Think About Your Eyes, a national public awareness campaign about the importance of scheduling an annual eye exam with an optometrist, conducted a survey of more than 1,000 U.S. parents of children aged two to 17 and uncovered key misconceptions about the importance of eye health this summer, especially when it comes to travel and caring for vision health. In fact, while 43% of families surveyed say they will take a road trip this summer, the survey also showed that families aren’t taking proper care of their vision and eye health before and during their time on the road.

Parents surveyed said they are more than twice as likely to wear UV eye protection whenever they leave the house as compared to their children (33% to 13%), and only 8% of parents and 9% of children wear eye protection when its overcast. What’s more, nearly a quarter (22%) of parents surveyed said their child never wears UV eye protection, compared to just 16% for themselves, and as it turns out, sun glare was the most common eye problem encountered by parents when behind-the-wheel. Nearly half (47%) of parents surveyed said their children would spend four or more hours using screens (tablets, smartphones) while traveling to and from their vacation destination and one third of parents said their kids will spend more than 6 hours with screens during the vacation itself.

Since the majority of parents (52%) surveyed agreed that road trips are a great way to see the country and agreed (61%) they allow for more quality family time, Think About Your Eyes is partnering with Airstream, innovative maker of the iconic “Silver Bullet” travel trailer, to highlight the important role vision plays in a life well-lived. Think About Your Eyes and Airstream will send YouTube family The Daily Bumps on an iconic summer road-trip in their Classic Smart Trailer, highlighting the importance of healthy vision in enjoying life’s moments and encouraging families to schedule a comprehensive eye exam before school starts.

The Daily Bumps, also known as the Lannings, will travel throughout the western United States in an Airstream trailer, chronicling their trip for their over four million subscribers on YouTube, as well as on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. They’ll stop in Nevada, Utah, and Idaho to see natural beauty, famous attractions, and visit family and friends—all things their vision allows them to appreciate. To kick-off the trip, the entire family received an annual comprehensive eye exam to ensure they were aware of any vision and eye health needs in advance of the trip, and shared their experience with parents online.

“This partnership with Airstream and The Daily Bumps, the first of its kind for Think About Your Eyes, illustrates the wide-reaching nature of our message,” said Dr. Rick Weisbarth, chair of the Think About Your Eyes Advisory Board. “By amplifying the need for annual comprehensive eye exams, we’re able to further spread the word about the importance of overall vision health, and that regardless of your age or physical heath, it is vital to detect eye problems at their early stages when they are most treatable.”

In order to find a doctor near you to schedule an annual comprehensive eye exam, visit ThinkAboutYourEyes.com. To follow along with The Daily Bumps on our summer road trip, follow them on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

For further information on Airstream and the Classic Smart Trailer please visit www.airstream.com.