To celebrate Dr. Tavel's newest Indiana Vision Center, we are offering a Grand Opening Contact Lens Sale at all Indianapolis Optical locations as well as all Vision Eye Centers across Indiana. This sale is spectacular for anyone who currently wears premium contact lenses or for anyone who is interested in wearing contacts for the first time. For $99.98, we are offering the following:
- Comprehensive Eye Examination
- Contact Lens Fitting Exam
- 2 boxes of Acuvue Oasys premium contact lenses
- One month supply of contact lens solution
- Fashion Sunglasses
On top of this, we are offering 20% off all eyeglasses. This is an exceptional deal and when compared to other Indianapolis Eye Care Doctors, it can't be beat. When you see the best eye doctors at
Dr. Tavel and get a great deal on contact lenses, you will see why we have been able to continue our 70 years of successful eye care in Indiana.
I admit, sometimes I am lazy. Rather than take the five minutes to scrape my windshield this morning I decided it wasn't that bad and that I would be fine to drive with some ice build up impacting my vision. On my drive in to the office I could see okay, but I realized as I was stopping at a light that I did not have perfect vision. My depth perception was a bit off and overall, I did not have the clear vision I need to drive at my best.
This situation is actually quite similar to wearing glasses that have scratches all over the lenses or even wearing glasses that do not have an anti-reflective coating on the lens. When patients do not buy eye glasses regularly and try to make their scratched lenses last longer, they are impacting their vision. Sure, they can see, but it isn't the best vision possible. The same can be said for patients that do not have an anti-reflective (AR) coating on their lenses. AR coating, or sometimes referred to as "no-glare" lenses, reduce reflections on the lens due to light and glare. From a performance standpoint, this helps reduce rings from light, which is important when driving at night and also when looking at a computer monitor. From an appearance perspective, AR coatings reduce the reflections on the lens, creating a better look. When the glare is reduced on the outside of the lens, it allows others to look at your eyes without any annoying reflections, giving you a more natural look.
Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care recommends that you always have an annual eye examination from the best eye doctor possible for health reasons. In addition, we recommend that you buy eye glasses whenever your lenses become too scratched up and for most people we recommend anti-reflective lens coating to reduce glare and improve vision.
On Monday, February 8th, Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care will open its 20th Indiana Vision Center in Zionsville, Indiana. The Zionsville Dr. Tavel will join the other vision eye centers in Indianapolis, Anderson, Bloomington, Columbus, Fishers, Greenwood, Kokomo, Muncie, New Castle, Shelbyville, Elkhart, South Bend, Richmond and Terre Haute. Three of the current optical locations are Vision Values by Dr. Tavel and the remaining 17 are Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care.
As with any of our Dr. Tavel stores, we will offer comprehensive eye examinations by a board certified Indiana eye doctor, premium contact lenses and eyeglasses. If you want to buy eye glasses or see the best eye doctor possible, come to our new location at 61 Boone Village in Zionsville or call 317-733-3344 for an appointment. Of course, you can also schedule on line at
www.drtavel.com. We look forward to serving the Zionsville community.
Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care is doing its part to help with the Haitian Relief Effort. Due to the massive earthquake that hit last week, many of the buildings have been damaged and personal belongings destroyed. As Indiana Eye Doctors, it only makes sense that we would help the best way we know how, with the gift of sight. We are asking that anyone who has an old pair of eyeglasses come into one of our 20 Vision Eye Centers to donate their used eyeglasses. We will be working with the American Red Cross to get these glasses to those in need.
It is estimated that over 4 million pairs of eyeglasses and lenses are thrown out in a given year in the United States. Rather than toss that old frame and lenses, come into Dr. Tavel or a Vision Values by Dr. Tavel optical location to donate these to someone in need. If you have a pair that you don't wear, bring them in. If you only have a frame, bring it in. We will accept any donation of used eyewear. Go to our locations page to find the nearest Indianapolis Optical or Indiana Optical store to you.
Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care now offers the Randy Jackson Eyewear Collection. Most of us know Randy Jackson from American Idol, with his cool demeanor and his "yo dawg" comments. Given that he has always worn some great frames that are stylish with just a bit of a unique edge, he partnered with Zyloware to create his own brand of frames. Randy's comments are that these frames are for men in their mid-20's to early 50's who care about their appearance. (Apparently if you don't care how you look, then these frames are not for you!)
After trying on each of the Randy Jackson frames, I can tell you that not only do they look stylish without being over the top, but they are incredibly comfortable. Some frames that are out there are bulky and meant to stand out. The problem is that some of them end up being very heavy and this tends to cause discomfort at the end of the day. Not the Randy Jackson Eyewear Collection. We offer these frames at all of our Indiana Optical locations where you can buy eye glasses so come check out this new line at Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care.
Dr. Tavel and his associates have decided to join up with local communities and speak at various "Dine With a Doc" events. These are free events that welcome local senior public to hear doctors speak once per month, presenting topics that are educational and informative for the participants.
In January, Dr. Elizabeth Johnson from the New Castle Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care is speaking at Hickory Creek in New Castle. Her topic is going to be cataracts, which is the leading cause of blindness. A cataract is the clouding of the lens. The lens of our eye is made out of water and protein and as we get older, the protein can sometimes clump together, which causes the clouding effect.
It is important for patients to have an annual eye examination to monitor this closely. At initial onset, it is possible to mitigate the effecs of cataracts by getting glasses and lenses with a higher prescription. Ultimately, cataract surgery can be a great solution for restoring vision. It is actually one of the most frequent surgeries performed, with over 3 million done annually.
For those patients in New Castle, Indiana, feel free to join Dr. Johnson at 10 am on the 27th of January at Hickory Creek to learn more about cataracts and the role your Indiana eye doctor can play in detection and prevention of this disease.
I just came across a staggering study that was done by the
National Eye Institute that found that Americans have gone from 25% myopic (nearsighted) in the 1970's to 41% this year. While the report didn't focus on what has caused this increase, there have been several experts who have commented that one cause is likely the increase of "near-work", such as working on the computer, texting and the increased usage of smart-phones, which requires great focus on a very small screen. When you spend a lot of time focusing your eyes on near objects, you aren't stimulating your far vision enough, causing problems in vision development.
As a parent of a 5 year old boy, I am acutely concerned about the vision development aspect. It is important to make sure my son doesn't spend too much time playing on the computer or watching TV and that he is spending time outside where his far vision is going to get the most stimulation. Not only is this healthy for his body to be playing outdoors instead of sitting on a couch, but it is also healthy for his vision.
This outcome of this study illustrates the increased need to have an annual eye examination. As we are spending more and more time at computers, using smart-phones with small text, etc, our vision is likely to get worse, which means we need to see our Indianapolis eye doctors on a regular basis to monitor our eye health and our vision needs.
As I started wearing contact lenses in the past few years, I found out that I am one of the many people who has dry eyes, which ultimately leads to discomfort if I am not wearing the right contact lens. The good news is that I have found ways to combat this discomfort so I can continue to wear premium contact lenses.
Daily Disposables - These lenses are changed every day, which means that you get to put in a new pair each morning that is free from built-up deposits on the lens. People who suffer from allergies are also going to be more comfortable in these as any allergens that stick to the lens go away with a new pair.
FDA-indicated for dryness - CooperVision has a lens, Proclear, that is FDA approved for improving comfort due to dry eye.
Low Water Lenses - I used to think that I wanted a lens with a high water content to alleviate the dry eye issue. However, I found that lenses with high water content need to be in a moist environment so if your eyes are dry to begin with, these will essentially dehydrate.
As with any of this, I recommend you see your eye care doctor or Indiana optometrist for an eye examination and an accurate assessment of your eye health and vision needs. The best eye doctors (who can be found at Dr. Tavel, by the way) will provide you with an appropriate solution to your dry eyes.
Recently, one of my good friends came down with Pink Eye. When most people think of Pink Eye, they think of young children at school, spreading this contagious disease to one another as they don't wash their hands often enough. The reality is that adults can contract this as well and some of the most likely adult candidates are contact lens wearers.
Why are contact lens wearers more vulnerable to pink eye and what was likely the primary cause of my friend getting pink eye? Poor hygiene in the handling of contact lenses and contact lens cases can contribute mightily to infections of this sort. My friend has a very bad habit of not changing or cleaning her premium contact lenses for months at a time.
So, when she went to get an eye examination with one of our Indianapolis eye doctors, she was told to throw away her contacts, replace her contact lens case and wear her eyeglasses for a few days to help alleviate the symptoms. The problem was that when she put her glasses on, they had a 3 year old prescription in them that was off substantially and her vision was impaired. Since she wears contact lenses all the time, she saw very little need to have an updated pair of glasses. Needless to say, she came back in to one of our Indianapolis locations and ordered a new pair of glasses.
Two morals to this story: (1) contact lens wearers need to follow the guidelines of their wear schedule so as to have the best eye health and (2) even those patients who wear contacts 24/7 have a need to have a back-up pair of glasses.
For years now, our country has been one that loves 2-week contact lenses. While other countries overseas are embracing daily disposable contact lenses, it is still a lens modality that has struggled to catch on here with any real success. For the life of me, I can't figure out why. The only guess I have is that we aren't as educated about this type of contact lens. With this, I urge you to take a look at Daily Disposables (
CooperVisions's ProClear 1 day &
ClearSight 1 day as well as
Ciba Vision's Focus Dailies) as on option for premium contact lenses.
The reasons are two-fold: better eye health and better comfort. The reasons it is better for eye health are simple:
- Since you have to change your lens on a daily basis, this promotes good ocular health. Daily Disposables have the highest compliance rate of any modality at 94%.
- Daily Replacement means less deposit build up, reducing problems associated with this, such as GPC
- Daily disposables have the lowest infection rate since you are putting in a new, fresh lens every day
The reasons for better comfort are obvious as well. Putting in a new lens every day means you are getting a fresh lens with no deposit build-up, allowing for a more comfortable wearing experience.
If you haven't tried daily disposable contact lenses, please take some time when you see your Indianapolis Optometrist or Indiana Eye Doctor to discuss this modality and the benefits it can provide.
What a game. Colts/Pats. Night game, national television and all the hype and hoopla. When it comes to big games, you are always hoping for a great one but never know if it is going to happen or not. Well, this one was great. We were down for a big part of the game and it seemed like there was no way we were going to win. A little bit of luck and a questionable decision led to the
Indianapolis Colts pulling out a win at the last second thanks to a touchdown pass from Peyton Manning to Reggie Wayne.
The game was great, the atmosphere was fantastic and the show of support from local Indianapolis and Indiana residents was phenomenal. I ran into several friends at the game and some old college friends from South Bend and Elkhart that I haven't seen in years. The interesting part about the night was that more than one of my buddies brought up their health savings plans or flex spending accounts and were asking about getting in to use that before the end of the year. We are at the biggest football game of the year and these guys want to talk about their health insurance plans!
It shows you how important it is to use health benefits before they expire. The great part about these plans is that you can use them for many health related reasons, specifically eye care. These plans can be used for eye examinations, contact lens fit examinations, purchasing frames and lenses and purchasing premium contact lenses. One of my friends from Columbus, Indiana was planning on using more of his health savings for the baby they had this year. When they didn't use as much as expected, he now has some funds that HE HAS TO USE. The great part is that now he can come to Dr. Tavel Family Eye Care and get the prescription sunglasses that he has wanted for some time.
This is a great opportunity for anyone with a plan like this. Go see your Indianapolis eye care doctor or come in to any of our Indiana Vision Centers before the end of the year and we will be sure to take care of you.
My 5 year old son had his final soccer game of the season last Saturday in Indianapolis. It was a great game and actually went to a shoot out at the end to decide the game. Okay, these are 5 and 6 year olds so there was no goalie and they basically had to kick the ball straight into the goal from 30 yards away, but nonetheless it was pretty exciting. Our team lost, but as with any youth soccer game the focus was more about getting their medals and what the snack of the week was.
It was a great fall day in Indiana and I got some sun, which is rare for early November. It got me thinking about how most people are unaware that extended exposure to the same harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays that affect their skin can also harm their eyes. While outside on Saturday, all of the children's eyes were exposed to the sun's rays. Some of the parents on the sidelines had sunglasses on, while others were wearing hats, which are both helpful in blocking UV rays from reaching the eyes. When I am outside, I typically wear contact lenses that block UV rays and I also wear polarized sunglasses, which are great for absorbing and blocking UV rays, while also reducing glare from the sun.
The next time you and your children are playing outside, stay focused on the health of your eyes by wearing sunglasses, brimmed hats or premium contact lenses with UV blocking. If you don't have these items available, make sure you go to your Indianapolis Optometrist, Eye Doctor or a local vision eye center.
When I used to think of Transitions lenses, I would think of a kid I went to elementary school with. Whenever he would come back in from recess, it would take FOREVER for his glasses to go from dark to light again. On top of that, his lenses would never fully go back to a clear state. He always seemed a bit frustrated with his lenses and it made a lasting impression upon me, that I haven't been able to truly shake until now.
The Transition lenses of today are much more efficient. They adjust very well to lighting conditions, going from clear indoors to sunglass-dark outdoors. These lenses are great in that they change much quicker than they used to and the lenses will get very clear inside. The nice part about Transition lenses is that they also help reduce eye strain and fatigue as you don't have to squint so much once you walk outside into the sun.
I recommend that anyone who intends to buy eye glasses, and doesn't want to buy an additional pair of prescription sunglasses, give Transitions lenses a test drive. You will be surprised at how convenient these lenses are and how comfortable they are for your lifestyle (assuming you go outside!). The next time you see your Indianapolis eye doctor, ask him or her their opinion on Transition lenses and you will likely find that the best eye doctors recommend them.
I was reading the latest issue of Eyecare Business magazine and they had some great statistics regarding children's vision.
- 23 million children have vision problems
- 95% of vision issues can be corrected if detected and treated early
- 7 - 12% of children have eye problems that may lead to permanent loss of vision if not detected and treated in time
- 2.4 million (or 10.5% of) children between the ages of zero and four are affected
- 86% don't have eyes examined before first grade
- Only 14% have their eyes examined before age 18
-- Source: PediaVision
Of all the statistics, the last one was the most surprising. As a family eye care practice, Dr. Tavel sees thousands of children every year for eye examinations, glasses and lenses and contact lenses. One of our primary goals is to educate families that they need to see an eye care doctor on an annual basis, even if you do not need to buy eye glasses. Looks like we need to continue spreading the word based on that last statistic...
Last Friday, Team Tavel spent the morning at Duke Realty's annual employee Health and Wellness Fair. I received a call from their office and they wanted Dr. Tavel to attend as the primary eye care provider for their employees. We gladly accepted and took some equipment to be able to do a vision screening for any employees that came by our tables.
This was a great opportunity as we were able to screen vision for almost 100 of Duke's employees. The overwhelming outcome of these screenings is that most of the employees need to come to Dr. Tavel for an annual eye examination. While there were a few employees who regularly take advantage of their health care insurance and see their Indianapolis eye doctor, most people don't. There were several people who admitted they hadn't been to their Indianapolis optometrist in 5 plus years!
This never makes much sense to me. First, most employers like Duke offer vision insurance whereby employees can get an annual eye examination for free or for a nominal co-pay. Second, eye exams are so much more than just telling you what your error of refraction is. We had some people say they haven't had problems seeing so they haven't had a need to see an Indiana eye doctor. This is one of the biggest misconceptions about seeing Dr. Tavel. Our eye examinations are done by the best eye doctors and they examine for multiple common eye diseases as well as several age-related eye diseases such as macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts and diabetic retinopathy.
Overall, it was a great opportunity to partner with a great company and educate, inform and screen vision.
I was watching the Colts game on Sunday night with some friends when someone commented on my glasses and asked what kind they were. I told him that I was wearing a Ted Baker frame and he started asking what kinds of frames we carry. I explained that we carry a wide variety of brands with a wide variety of styles of eyeglasses including Columbia, Fendi, Cazal Eyewear, Kishimoto (great, durable and sleek looking Barely There frames, by the way), Vannie Eyewear, Harve Benard, Baby Phat, Phat Farm, Lulu Guinness, Vera Bradley, Laguiole Optique, Axebo, and many others. I also explained that you could get most of these brands in sunglasses as well with a polarized prescription or non-prescription lens. Also, we have some great brands in sunglasses, such as Rudy Project for athletic wear sunglasses and Ed Hardy sunglasses as great fashionable sunglasses.
This got me thinking about how unique the eye care industry is. When you think about eye care, you typically think about having an optometrist examine your eyes for health reasons and also for refractive error. That side of the house is much more medical in nature. However, when it comes to glasses and lenses, you think about fashion and when it comes to fashion, people think of brand names. Patients want to go to the best eye doctor, get the best eye examination possible in Indiana and they ALSO want to go to an Indiana Vision Center where they can buy eye glasses that are going to look great, have a solid brand name and make a fashion statement. As an optical provider, it is our job to pull all of these offerings together into one comprehensive package, which is what you will find at Dr. Tavel.
If you're ever in my situation and you find yourself having to stay up all night reading a 20 pound text book about Business Law while simultaneously taking notes on the computer screen - you may also find yourself wondering why the words keep getting harder and harder to see (let alone comprehend) and, if there is anything in the world that could possibly better your situation. Well, lucky for you - I have just the thing.
A few things to be learned here:
1. All-Nighters suck & coffee is wonderful.
2. After lengthy periods of time looking at small text, like the letters in a text book or those on a computer screen, you may begin to experience blurred vision.
So what does this mean?
Your eyes are most likely strained from shifting your focus from the text book to the computer screen and back.
What can we do?
Computer glasses and lenses are a great option for this situation. What makes computer glasses unique is that they contain a prescription for optimal intermediate distance viewing (a little farther than reading distance, but closer than driving distance), and combine it with the Anti-Reflective coating that helps reduce glare from the screen which can cause headaches and increased eyestrain.
Eye care doctors in college towns, like our Bloomington Eye Doctor, suggest computer glasses quite often to students to help with focus on school work.
And the benefits are:
With a simple eye examination you can get your intermediate distance measured and, of course, a pair of computer glasses. You'll experience reduced eye strain, fewer headaches, increased ability to focus, and hopefully better grades as a result!
Time to get back to school work!
On Sunday, I was fortunate enough to attend the first
Colts game of the year (thank you to the fine attorneys at
Hall Render for the tickets!). What an incredible day. The weather was perfect, not a cloud in the sky. Walking to the stadium was amazing; there were thousands of die-hard Colts fans in their blue and white jerseys yelling their support for the team. When I walked into
Lucas Oil Stadium, they had opened the roof and the north end wall so the sun was shining in and right before kick-off they had four fighter planes do a fly-over.
One of the reasons I enjoyed the day so much, besides obvious reasons, is that I have the benefit of wearing the best contact lenses available. Working for an eye care doctor, I get to try a wide variety of premium contact lenses. One of the most comfortable lenses for me is the
Air Optix Aqua contacts by
Ciba Vision. When I am out on the weekends, I prefer to wear contact lenses over glasses and lenses as they are a better fit for me when I am out and about in a more active manner. And trust me, I was very active in cheering for the Colts on Sunday! Seriously, though, the Air Optix Aqua contacts work for me because they wear well on my eyes and give me great vision, without the discomfort of having dry eyes. They were definitely a contributing factor to a very enjoyable day, along with a win for the
Colts. Go Horse!
There are a variety of eye health warning signs, each of which should be monitored consistently. The best way to detect problems with your eyes is to have a regular eye examination with your eye care doctor. Please see your Indiana Eye Doctor if you have any of the following eye health warning signs:
- eye pain or discomfort
- blurred vision
- colored halos around lights
- large amount of spots and floaters
- inflammation of eyelids and/or eyelashes
- sudden noticeable changes in vision
- weakening of color vision
- tunnel vision
- physical changes in the eye
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