Dr. Mark Melson, who is assistant professor of Ophthamology at Vanderbilt University, gave an interview recently by reporters. The aim of the interview was to try and find out the truth behind many of the so called old wives tales told to children about what is good and not good in relation to vision.

For instance, one particular myth that has been passed on down the ages is that eating carrots improve your eye sight. Dr. Melson said that while carrots do indeed contain Vitamin A which is a necessary vitamin for maintain eye health, it is really a myth. What matters is that people should eat a balanced diet including food rich in vitamin A including asparagus, apricots, nectarines, milk and cheese.

He also advises against taking too many vitamin A supplements as the chemical is known to cause a number of side effects such as vomiting and increased head pressure, nausea and muscle weakness.

Another myth debunked by Mark Melson is that constant wearing of glasses does not damage your vision.

Dr. Melson points out that degradation of vision is a consequence of age, but wearing glasses all the time can make the eyes dependent on them, and so make natural vision worse over time.

By contrast, Dr. Mark Melson debunks another long standing myth that reading in dim light damages eyesight. He suggests that while it is possible to get a headache after reading in the dark, this is due to muscle strain and does not have a long lasing effect on vision.

Finally, the cross-eyed myth handed down for centuries was also debunked. This is the situation whereby children strain their eyes trying to make them look cross-eyed; parents generally tell children that they will stay that way. Dr. Melson said that eyes are not damaged; all that happens is the eye muscles become strained.

Eyes, he said are resilient and won’t get stuck.