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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Eye Can See Clearly Now: Exams Urged for Iowa Students

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Monday, August 25, 2014   

DES MOINES, Iowa - With the start of the new school year, parents across the state are being reminded healthy eyes are critical to their child's educational success. Gary Ellis, executive director with the Iowa Optometric Association, says this is a great time of year to get students in for an exam, especially younger kids who may not always speak up.

"It's extremely important relative to their ability to learn," Ellis says. "The first 12 years of their life over 80 percent of learning comes from the visual system, so it's critical their eyes are healthy."

Signs a child may have eye-or-vision problems include headaches, frequent eye rubbing or blinking, the avoidance of reading and other close activities.

Ellis notes that like any other health issues, early detection and treatment provide the best opportunity to correct vision problems. He says regular eye exams are needed not just screenings on vision.

"Vision is way beyond just seeing 20/20 on the blackboard," says Ellis. "There are other health issues relative to the eye that oftentimes are missed through a simple screening at school or the pediatrician's office. It's important they get to an optometrist or ophthalmologist to have a complete overall health-of-the-eye exam."

The American Optometric Association suggests a child's first eye exam at around six months of age, with another at age three and then again around kindergarten or first grade. From there, students should have their eyes checked every other year, or more frequently if specific problems or risk factors exist.


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