A normal sign of aging that’s impossible to ignore and difficult to hide, presbyopia usually occurs beginning at around age 40 – you’ll know when it’s happening to you as you’ll need to hold objects or reading material further away from the eyes in order to focus.
The eye’s lens stiffens with age, so it’s less able to focus when you view something up close.
These age-related changes occur within the proteins in the lens, making the lens harder and less elastic over time. Age-related changes also take place in the muscle fibres surrounding the lens. With less elasticity, the eye has a harder time focusing up close.
Even if you can still see pretty well up close, presbyopia can cause headaches, eye strain and visual fatigue that makes reading and other near vision tasks less comfortable and more tiring.
Presbyopia cannot be cured but can be compensated for by using contact lenses or bifocal/multifocal glasses. There are also surgical options such as intra-ocular lenses and laser treatments that can help to overcome this problem.