What Does 20/20 Vision Actually Mean?

One of the primary tests optometrists use with patients is to have them read lines of letters on a Snellen Chart, commonly called an eye chart. The procedure tests visual acuity, or the sharpness of your vision, when looking straight ahead. 20/20 vision means your visual clarity at 20 feet is comparable to most people. If you live in or near Columbia and are looking for an “eye clinic near me,” contact Dr. Dorothy Park & Associates to schedule an appointment.

How Your Eyes Work and Refractive Errors

The light entering your eye passes through your cornea and lens. They refract the light before it reaches the retina, but sometimes, they distort it so it does not fall on the retina correctly. Slight variations in the structure of your eyes can distort how light lands on your retinas, including:

Your eye’s shape Their depth

The flatness of 

your corneas

The thickness of your lenses

When your eyes vary from the norm, light can be incorrectly focused when it strikes the retina. The light may come into focus in front of or behind your retina, each leading to vision problems often corrected by eyeglasses or contacts. When light falls on your retina correctly or nearly so, your vision falls in the normal range.

What is 20/20 Vision?

20/20 vision refers to the average visual clarity of objects 20 feet away. Optometrists in the U.S. use 20 feet as the standard because the muscle that focuses the eye is relaxed at that distance. (Countries that use the metric system refer to 6/6 vision, or vision at 6 meters.)

While 20/20 vision means your visual acuity is normal, it does not represent a clean bill of health for your eyes. The 20/20 vision standard for visual acuity does not summarize your peripheral vision, depth perception, color blindness, eye coordination, or many other indicators of healthy, effective eyes and eye health. It is terrific to have 20/20 vision, but other eye health indicators can be more critical for some individuals.

Contact Dr. Dorothy Park & Associates in Columbia, SC

If you are concerned about the clarity of your vision, contact an optometrist. If you live in or near Columbia, contact Dr. Dorothy Park & Associates to schedule an appointment. Call us today at 803-254-6306 or use our appointment request form.ff