A study in the May issue of Ophthalmology found a link between clear vision and longer life in Asian patients. Researchers examined more than 1,200 patients from 1998 until 2004. Analysis of the patients health and death records demonstrated a death rate three times higher for patients with an acuity worse than 20/40, when adjusted to account for age, gender, hypertension, diabetes, smoking, heart attack and stroke. Researchers speculate that patients compromised vision may contribute to fatal or injurious falls and accidents. But, this study found no specific links between cataract, glaucoma and other eye disorders and mortality.

Children think that their glasses-wearing peers are smarter and more honest, according to the Childrens Attitudes about Kids in Eyeglasses (CAKE) study, published in the May issue of Ophthalmic and Physiological Optics. Researchers interviewed 80 participants between the ages of six and 10. Also, athletic boys wearing glasses were more positively received by nearly two-thirds of participants than athletic girls wearing glasses. The survey included six questions, each accompanied by a different pair of photos that varied by gender and ethinicity, from which statistics were generated.