Thread: Eye exercises?
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Old 03-13-2013 | 10:50 AM
  #12  
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rickair7777
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From: Engines Turn or People Swim
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Nobody (civilian) should sweat minor or moderate refractive error, that can easily be fixed with glasses, contacts, or lasers (some risk with the later).

What really counts is your best corrected visual acuity (BCVA). This is how well you can see after your refractive error is completely and correctly removed.

BCVA is a function of genetics and eye health (and age, but mostly later in life). Your BCVA should not change much until near (or after) retirement, unless you develop actual health problems such as cataracts, glaucoma, retinal disorders, etc. Your BCVA is probably better than 20/20, especially when young.

BCVA is of interest (especially to young pilots) because it shows how much room you have to deteriorate before you bump up against 20/20. If you're young and have BCVA of 20/15 you're probably good to age 65, even with some degradation. But a very young pilot with 20/20 BCVA might be at risk for slipping above 20/20 before age 65...personally I might not recommend an aviation career for such a young person, too much risk of losing the medical cert (although you can get medical waivers in some cases).

Again BCVA and refractive error are two different things. RA can be corrected (unless it's extreme) but BCVA is probably about as good as you're ever going to get. Although you may be able to improve BCVA by improving your overall health...stop smoking and maybe take eye-specific vitamins. But if you're already at peak health, there's probably not much you can do for your BCVA (maybe vitamins).
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