One of the hardest questions eye care professionals routinely have to deal with is when to tell people with visual difficulaties that they need to stop driving.

Giving up your driving privilege is difficult to come to terms with if you have a problem that leads to permanent visual decline.

The legal requirements for visual acuity vary from state to state. For example, in New Jersey the legal requirement to drive, based on vision, has been 20/50 vision or better with best correction in one eye for a “pleasure” driving license. For a commercial driving license, the requirement is 20/40 vision or better in both eyes.

In some states there is also a requirement for a certain degree of visual field (the ability to see off to the sides).

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the highest rate of motor vehicle deaths per mile driven is in the age group of 75 and older (yes, even higher than teenagers). Much of this increased rate could be attributable to...

We have all heard the term ”Love is in the Air,” but can love really be in the eyes? Actually, Science has proven it so. Certain chemicals (or endorphins) that produce the emotion of love can be emitted through emotions expressed in the eyes. There are physiological changes in the eyes that occur when love is expressed between two individuals. Love for a romantic partner, a family member, or a favorite pet can all cause the same physical response: the pupil (black part in the center of the eye) dilates.

The size of the pupil can be an indication of emotional responses and messages. According to Scientific American, the autonomic nervous system (ANS), which directs our fight or flight response, causes the pupil to have a quick dilating response. The ANS is also in charge of heart rate and perspiration, and when a person is extremely interested in another person, the pupil has a dilating effect that is slightly less than the pupillary light reflex. This bounce in size is an...