Can Headaches be Caused by Poor Vision?
If you’ve suffered from headaches (or worse yet, migraines), you know how debilitating they can be. They can interfere with focusing on work, taking care of your kids, or even enjoying a fun vacation with your friends. And if headaches are recurring, they can become a real burden.
Instead of simply relieving your symptoms, the real solution lies in figuring out the cause of your headaches so you can address it. Could poor eye health be behind your headaches? Read on to learn more.
Minor Eye-Related Issues Tied to Headaches
The answer to whether poor vision headaches or poor eye health headaches are possible is a resounding yes. It’s common for someone with an untreated eye or vision problem to deal with headaches for a while before seeing an eye doctor to figure out why it’s happening. For example, if you have astigmatism that has not been treated, headaches and eye strain are a regular side effect. Even farsightedness (hyperopia) can put undue stress on the eyes and leave you with uncomfortable head pain.
The good news is that LASIK laser eye surgery can , in most cases, fix astigmatism and hyperopia. These are two of the easiest eye health issues to correct, and doing so can go a long way in nixing those nagging headaches.
If you’re past 40 years old, have farsightedness,) or presbyopia due to a decrease in flexibility of the natural lens, you might also suffer from eye fatigue resulting in headaches. Presbyopia cannot be addressed directly with LASIK, but can be addressed with other procedures. The resulting discomfort from presbyopia can also be minimized by getting proper progressive eyeglasses or reading glasses.
Major Eye Problems Tied to Headaches
If your headaches are not being caused by astigmatism, hyperopia or presbyopia, they could signal a more serious problem. When you have otherwise healthy eyes, it’s not unusual to develop cataracts - and cataract headaches - as you age. As your eye’s lens becomes more clouded, the headaches often will worsen.This is commonly caused by eyestrain from poor vision. Cataracts are easily removed with cataract surgery, but are always best treated when caught early. Left untreated, they are the number one cause of preventable blindness, so get to the eye doctor right away if you suspect you may be developing a cataract.
Another possible cause of eye related headaches is glaucoma. Glaucoma is an eye condition in which the optic nerve gets damaged. Glaucoma-related headaches can be mild or extremely severe, and sometimes are accompanied by nausea and vomiting. If this sounds like something you’ve been experiencing, have it checked by an eye doctor as soon as possible.This is not a comprehensive list of eye conditions that are associated with headaches but they are commonly check and addressed with routine eye examinations.
So, yes - headaches can be (and often are) caused by eye health issues or poor vision. They can interfere with your quality of life on a daily basis, or they may even be a symptom of something more dangerous. If you’ve been dealing with recurring headaches, please contact us to schedule an eye exam.