Natural vision correction

[[File:Rasterbrille.jpg|thumb|165px|Pinhole glasses.]]
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'''Natural vision correction''' is the notion that poor vision (such as astigmatism or myopia) can be cured or compensated for "[[appeal to nature|naturally]]." This is often paired with the belief that eyeglasses are unnecessary and that eyeglasses and eye tests can cause substantial damage.

Yes, eyeglasses [[denialism]] is actually a thing.

==Science says…==
Bad glasses can mess up your vision — you'll notice this, it won't be a surprise — but good glasses correct it without ill effects.

Lots of time spent inside during childhood can actually leave you nearsighted. So get your kids out more.<ref name=dolgin>[http://www.nature.com/news/the-myopia-boom-1.17120 The myopia boom: Short-sightedness is reaching epidemic proportions. Some scientists think they have found a reason why] by Elie Dolgin (18 March 2015) ''Nature''</ref> If not, rest your eyes by looking at objects roughly 15-20 feet away. Nearsightedness is more than just an annoyance; because of the associated eye deformation, it also "increases the risk of retinal detachment, cataracts, glaucoma and even blindness."<ref name=dolgin/>

==Natural vision correction methods==
*{{wpl|Pinhole glasses}} work by focusing light using pinholes, rather than lenses, similar to a pinhole camera. They do work to correct vision (though not as well as lenses) &mdash; but [[woo]] merchants claim that they can ''permanently'' repair your vision. The FTC has banned such claims in the US since 1993,<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20071113123547/http://www.casewatch.org/ftc/news/1993/natural-vision.shtml</ref> but manufacturers have continued to make such claims where they think they can get away with them.<ref>http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/the-truth-about-pinhole-glasses-1253113.html</ref>
*The [[Bates eye method]] is an old piece of woo from the early 20<sup>th</sup> century. Opthalmologists are pained that this terrible idea which doesn't work just won't die.
* [[Biofeedback]] methods are sometimes used. A machine<ref>Such as [http://www.accommotrac.com/Accommotrac_Vision_Trainer/AVT.html the Accommotrac&reg; Vision Trainer]</ref> reads the accommodation (focal distance) of the lens in your eye in real time, and turns this into beeping tones &mdash; the lower-pitched the tone and slower the beep, the longer the focal distance. Then the patient stares at a projection of a distant object while this is going on and tries to ''make'' the tone get lower through force of will, or relaxation, or some such. The patient can go through many sessions hoping for improvement that never happens. Sometimes the patient achieves a "breakthrough" by partly closing his eyes, which fools the focal-distance sensor into thinking your lens is much less convex than it actually is.
*[[Joseph Mercola]] sells a "Secrets of Regaining Your Vision Naturally" programme.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130216225134/http://freethoughtblogs.com/amilliongods/2013/02/11/not-the-ducks-oculus-reparo/ Not the Ducks! – Oculus Reparo] (A Million Gods)</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20130630053742/http://freethoughtblogs.com/amilliongods/2013/05/04/you-dont-need-glasses/ Not the Ducks! – You Don't Need Glasses] (A Million Gods)</ref>
*There are, of course, those who offer to fix your eyes with [[supplement]]s…<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20100920150544/http://daveshealingnotes.com/ailments/far-sighted-eye-natural-remedies.html</ref> or [[homeopathy]].<ref>http://hpathy.com/clinical-cases/four-cases-of-cataract-cured-homeopathically/</ref>

==Unassisted changes in vision==
{{main|Spontaneous remission}}
Many short-sighted people experience an ''improvement'' in their vision in their forties. This is their myopia interacting with {{wpl|presbyopia||,}} which is the progressive weakening of the ability to focus. The happy period lasts a few years, then it's varifocals time!

Needless to say, if the timing of an attempt at natural vision correction happens during this period, it can easily provide an [[Anecdotal evidence|anecdote]] to feather the cap of natural vision correction practitioners, who (along with the patient) are clearly blissfully (and/or [[Willful ignorance|willfully]]) ignorant to the concept of "[[regression to the mean]]".

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Pseudoscience]]
[[Category:Alternative medicine]]
[[Category:Denialism]]

Categories: Pseudoscience, Alternative medicine, Denialism