WITH the arrival of National Eye Health Week Barrow & Districts Society for the Blind is urging people to get their eyesight checked.

To raise awareness of National Eye Health Week, the charity held a coffee afternoon to give members and the general public the opportunity to find out more about how to keep their eyes healthy.

Advice is on hand at the charity's Vision Support Centre and through picking up leaflets from the national organisation ‘Vision Matters’.

Each year, hundreds of people across the UK are diagnosed with serious eye conditions.

Left untreated, these conditions have the potential for an individual’s sight to deteriorate and in the worst cases can lead to blindness.

This week, Barrow & Districts Society for the Blind will be highlighting the importance of regular eye tests and promoting behaviour that will help to protect eyesight.

Vision Support Manager, Maggie Nelson said: “We really want people to understand just how important it is to ensure that you are up to date with your sight tests.

“It’s very easy for serious sight conditions to develop unnoticed.

“Many people to fail to notice symptoms of their serious eye condition until it is too late.

“Sight tests are a quick and easy way to protect your eyesight and potentially detect other serious health conditions.

“They are also free for many.

“So if you know you are due a test, make sure you book in.

“You can look after your eyes by taking simple steps such as eating plenty of fruit and particularly green vegetables, by protecting your eyes from the sun and by not smoking.”

At the coffee morning, a variety of vegetables were on offer to taste, as eating a diet rich in omega three fatty acids and vegetables, particularly green vegetables, can help protect against macular damage and may slow the formation of cataracts.

Staff members also donated items of fruit and vegetables to make up two eye health hampers to be raffled off.

Through National Eye Health Week, Barrow & Districts Society for the Blind is promoting the message that around half of all sight loss is preventable.

By looking after our eyes through protecting them from the sun, eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, having regular eye tests and by not smoking.

National Eye health Week takes place between September 23 and 29.

Barrow & Districts Society for the Blind currently supports 734 people of all ages with sight loss in the borough.

To help support the charity, or to find out more please visit www.barrowblindsociety.org.uk

For more information on our current activities visit the Facebook page www.facebook.com/barrowblindsociety.