Eva Longoria Baston has made her mark in more ways than one: Onscreen as an actress, behind the screen as a director, and as an entrepreneur and activist with the Eva Longoria Foundation. Recently, she’s become committed to raising awareness about presbyopia, age-related blurry near vision—an eye condition she has experienced firsthand. Presbyopia typically begins around age 40 and affects nearly half of the U.S. adult population (128 million Americans). Here, she shares what her journey has been like with Parade.com—and how she makes time for mindfulness when life gets busy.
On getting a diagnosis
When Longoria first experienced difficulty with her vision, she decided to try reading glasses. “I started having trouble seeing and eventually caved in and got some readers. But I thought there has to be something else,” says Longoria. Still searching for answers, she assumed her vision issues must be related to fatigue. “I noticed I was pushing the phone away and making the font on screen bigger,” Longoria explains. “I really wanted to know what was happening. I thought I was just tired.” Looking for alternative options, she decided to consult an eye care professional. “I went to my eye doctor and he prescribed Vuity. I had no idea there was a treatment option like this. Once I started using the drops, it made a difference for my vision,” Longoria states. This is the first and only FDA-approved prescription eye drops for blurry near vision. “I use one drop a day and it helps me see up close,” says Longoria. While she still uses her reading glasses—and they do help—the drops are a good opportunity to give her reading glasses a break.
Raising awareness to help others who have recently received a diagnosis
If you’re dealing with blurry vision, Longoria has an important message: Talk to your doctor sooner rathe than later. “What I’m encouraging most people to do, if you have these symptoms as I did: Things are getting blurry, it’s hard for me to read my child’s children’s book, and read my makeup label, go to an eye doctor and get checked,” Longoria says. For full safety information on Vuity, visit vuity.com. Next up: How to Manage Age-Related Eye Issues.
