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With school back in session next week, the Canadian Association of Optometrists is getting the word out on children’s vision.

The association says a recent survey shows parents rank eye health as one of their lowest health priorities for their kids.

Local optometrist Dr Kristen Kincaid says it’s important that children get in to see an optometrist, “to make sure that their eyes are healthy and they’re seeing well because in the classroom, 80 per cent of learning when they’re sitting in that classroom is visual.”

The survey revealed that almost three-quarters of Ontario’s parents are unaware that vision problems can cause speech difficulties, nearly two-thirds are unaware that they can lead to developmental delays, and half of parents do not realize that a vision problem may be the cause of short attention spans in children.