Women's Eye Health Month in Ohio: what you should know

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Prevent Blindness Ohio has declared April as Women’s Eye Health and Safety Month. That’s because 112 million more women than men are living with vision loss and blindness.

Amy Pulles, the president and CEO of Prevent Blindness Ohio, said women are more affected by eye issues for a few reasons.

“Women live longer, then allowing them the opportunity for aging eye diseases to impact them more severely, as well as hormonal changes that women as they age, as well as during pregnancy,” said Pulles.

Aging eye diseases that are common among women include cataracts, glaucoma, thyroid eye disease and dry eyes. On top of being painful and uncomfortable, you may not realize that dry eyes can also lead to eye ulcers that cause vision loss.

And as you age, you may notice it’s harder to see thighs close up.

“That tends to go starting at around age 40 so again being mindful of that and telling your eye doctor when you start having trouble seeing up close because that can be corrected with lenses,” said Pulles.

The best way to prevent any of these issues is regular visits to the eye doctor.

“Regardless of whether or not you are experiencing any symptoms or not, you really want to make sure that you are getting a regular eye exam because those aging eye diseases will impact your eyes and cause permanent vision loss before you even realize you are experiencing vision loss,” said Pulles.

How often you visit the eye doctor depends on your age, family history and other health conditions and Pulles said you should ask your doctor about what will work best for you.

People who do not have insurance and meet the current 200 percent federal poverty guidelines qualify for Ohio’s Vision Care Outreach program.