# What's the Straight Dope on eye exercises? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 3, 2005, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752 "2005-06-03T17:34:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2005, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/1 "2005-06-03T17:34:02Z")
Is there any kind of exercise that reliably improves or maintains the quality of your vision? ---
**Author:** ![rainy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@rainy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rainy)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2005, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/2 "2005-06-03T17:41:05Z")
I have been told by my doctor (general practioner) that due to my job involving staring at a computer screen 8 hours a day I should take breaks every hour or so. And during those breaks I should go to a location larger than a regular office, maybe outdoors and spend a moment picking something in the distance and focus on that, then picking something close at hand and focusing on that…lather, rinse, repeat. FWIW, IANAD, etc. etc. -rainy ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2005, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/3 "2005-06-03T17:53:38Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > Is there any kind of exercise that reliably improves or maintains the quality of your vision? Eyerobics are good for the muscles. Exercises will NOT improve vison defects requiring corrective lenses. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2005, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/4 "2005-06-03T18:09:48Z")
For the straightdope on all medical realted quackery, [quackwatch](http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/eyequack.html) always has good information. > [@](#): > > Remember: no type of eye exercise can improve a refractive error or cure any ailment within the eyeball or in any remote part of the body. If you are considering a vision training program, request a written report detailing the problem, the proposed treatment plan, an estimate of the time and costs involved, and the prognosis. If the plan is not targeted toward a specific visual problem (such as amblyopia), or if it includes a broad promise such as improving I.Q., forget about it. ---
**Author:** ![Zahava424](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/76d3ee/32.png) [@Zahava424](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zahava424)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2005, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/5 "2005-06-03T19:44:46Z")
I was given eye excercises by an ENT to improve my balance and stop me from getting dizzy. No mention was made of eyesight improvement. ---
**Author:** ![FatBaldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecd19e/32.png) [@FatBaldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatBaldGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2005, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/6 "2005-06-03T19:52:24Z")
I’ve heard ads on the radio for some program to improve your vision without glasses by exercising your eyes. Sounds like a lot of snake oil to me. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2005, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/7 "2005-06-03T20:00:49Z")
> **[Have you ever used the "See Clearly Method"?](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=245070)** > > My vision is rapidy deteriorating and I am in need of a way to halt or improve this problem. I have thought about using www.seeclearlymethod.com. If you have any experience with this program please let me know if it worked for you. Thanks, ... > **[Improve your vision without lenses or surgery!](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=240933)** > > I heard a radio ad today claiming such a thing. They didn’t say what their methods were, but they said to check their website for their video. I couldn’t remember the URL when I got home, so I googled and came up with a few variations on the theme,... > **["See Clearly Method" -- Legit or not](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=199658)** > > I’ve heard commercials for the “See Clearly Method” on the radio a lot. And while I have no vision problems, I’m still curious if it’s legit or not. http://www.seeclearlymethod.com/ I don’t see how it could be, but, maybe it is. > **["See Clearly Method"](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=156738)** > > I have lately heard numerous radio ads for what is called the See Clearly Method for improving vision. Allegedly doctor developed. As I can think of no physiologic posibility that anything short of surgery could improve your vision (except for... > **[The See Clearly Method](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=151087)** > > For those who don’t know… the See Clearly Method is a series of eye exercises that supposedly help increase the function of your eyes and help you rely less on your eyegear (glasses/contacts.) Or even help you eliminate their needs. So I constantly... > **[See Clearly Method](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=55629)** > > What is the deal with this “See Clearly Method”. They make all sorts of incredible (and suspicious) claims, yet they are able to advertise on TV, radio, and the Internet without regulatory authorities coming down on them. Does this method of... > **[The See Clearly Method](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=63269)** > > Mariette Hartley is doing a commercial on the radio about a program called “The See Clearly Method” and she claims that you can improve your vision. She even implies that you may no longer need glasses. I have heard of doing eye exercises to improve... ---
**Author:** ![wevets](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e9a140/32.png) [@wevets](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wevets)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/8 "2005-06-04T05:16:00Z")
Back when I was doing a lot of work with microscopes, I was given some eye excercises to help preserve my distance focusing abilities. There are muscles in the eye that help deform the lens (ciliary muscles, IIRC), so it can help with those. ---
**Author:** ![hauss](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5fc32e/32.png) [@hauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hauss)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/9 "2005-06-04T06:11:39Z")
Its my understanding (and, personal experience) that you can only get better at either seeing close or far away, not both at the same time (in fact, an improvement in one means a deficiency in the other). And even then, it is a very small improvement. ---
**Author:** ![SparrowHawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ac8455/32.png) [@SparrowHawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SparrowHawk)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2005, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/10 "2005-06-04T06:35:36Z")
Like **wevets** , I was given focusing exercises to compensate for too much near work. In part, I had a tendency to focus in front of the object I was actually trying to look at (I sorta got stuck in “close mode”), and the exercises did help with that. So I think it depends what you’re trying to correct. ---
**Author:** ![berkxz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9de0a6/32.png) [@berkxz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/berkxz)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/11 "2014-04-12T06:51:02Z")
Yes there is [eye exercises to improve vision](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4g2pFWVw-M) . In fact there are too many people already improve their vision by Dr. bates method. Click this link to get an idea on [How To Improve Eyesight Naturally](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4g2pFWVw-M) ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2014, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/12 "2014-04-12T07:07:19Z")
Spam reported. ---
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2017, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-straight-dope-on-eye-exercises/306752/13 "2017-04-17T01:30:30Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > Is there any kind of exercise that reliably improves or maintains the quality of your vision? Yes. Austin Frakt at the New York Times recently wrote about Gabor patch training, which has been shown to be effective in treating presbyopia: [https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/27/upshot/training-your-brain-so-that-you-dont-need-reading-glasses.html?\_r=1](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/27/upshot/training-your-brain-so-that-you-dont-need-reading-glasses.html?_r=1)