Vision Development in Babies

Human eye development begins two weeks after conception and continues throughout prenatal formation. Vision development is an on-going process that begins once a baby is born and lasts until two years of age. Babies must learn how to focus, use both eyes in unison and accurately use what they see to understand their world. Babies' sight matures in three specific stages, and there are specific measures parents can take to care for their baby's eye development along the way.

Birth to Four Months

• Moments after birth, babies are able to see objects within 8 to 10 inches of their faces. Their keenness of vision is about 20/400, or similar to an adult only being able to see the first line on an eye chart. Although they have color vision from birth, complex shapes and high contrast colors--like black and white--are the most interesting to newborns. Within the first four months of life, babies are attracted to new objects in familiar spaces, so moving things around in their room can stimulate their eye development. Until about 4 months of age, their eyes don't work together, and as such, some infants are prone to crossed eyes. This is normal unless the eyes never track together or don't improve.

Five to Eight Months

• From 5 to 8 months of age, babies are learning how to control their eye movement as it relates to hand and body movement. Along with coordinated eye movement, babies develop three-dimensional sight--or depth perception--which is absent at birth. Color vision continues to develop during this time. At this stage, a nightlight in the bedroom helps babies' eyes develop focus in the dark, and talking to them while moving around helps them develop trained eye movement. Typically, babies begin to crawl at 8 months; according to the American Optometric Association, babies who graduate quickly to the walking stage may, in fact, experience a slight delay in learning to use their eyes.

Nine to Twelve Months

• Following the average, most babies start to pull themselves up from the floor around nine months of age, giving them an entirely different view on the world around them. As their eyes continue to develop, so does the rest of their coordination. By about 10 months of age, a baby typically has enough dexterity to grasp objects between the thumb and forefinger. Often before 1 year of age, babies can throw things precisely and gauge short distances. Encouraging babies to crawl, and giving them toys that require precision grasping, will aid in vision development during this stage.

One to Two Years

• Although babies are still developing their vision between 1 and 2 years of age, it's more of a fine-tuning process. At this point, hand-eye coordination and eye-memory coordination are two of the most obvious gauges of their progression--as they begin to grasp crayons and recognize repeated images. Exploring the world around them through sounds and sights takes precedence over all else at this stage, which means that auditory and visual development has a direct impact on speech and learning development.

Eye Exams

• According to the American Optometric Association, "...vision problems in infants can cause developmental delays." Further, according to InfantSEE.org, "[sight] disorders are the fourth most common disability in the United States and the most prevalent handicapping condition during childhood." As such, healthcare professionals recommend that infants have regular eye assessments from 6 to 12 months of age. Many vision problems that can be corrected with early detection can also cause permanent vision problems if left untreated.