NEW research show more than 300,000 Scottish adults have never had their eyes tested.
A survey commissioned by Dunfermline-based retinal imaging tech experts, Optos, indicates that 355,840 thousand adults have never had their eyes tested by an optician.
It revealed that more than three quarters of people in Scotland considered their eye health as very important to them.
But despite caring about the health of their eyes, the pandemic had prevented two-fifths from attending appointments.
Half of those surveyed said it was because they worried about how safe it was to attend, while 24 per cent said there were no appointments available and 15 per cent were shielding or self-isolating.
Gareth Steer, VP of European Sales at Optos said: “Over the past year, we’ve all been spending more time at home and in front of screens. From working at a laptop or sitting watching TV, there are increasing concerns around eye health and a rise in cases of eye strain.
“Sight loss prevention charity, Fight for Sight, recently found that more than a third of people felt their eyesight had worsened since the start of the pandemic.
“We want people across Scotland to know that opticians using advanced retinal imaging technology are able to carry out their appointments in a safe way and will be able to identify any potential problems early, reducing the risk of eye disease and protecting eyesight.”
Encouragingly, people in Scotland do see the value in having the best eye exam possible and value expert advice as More than two thirds of people surveyed saying that they want the reassurance that potential issues are found early.
