Eyeright Vision claims it can restore your sight "safely, quickly and for good".
The Auckland-based company says its "eye gym" programme treats a range of conditions including short- and long-sightedness. With its programme, which can cost $5000+, you'll be able to ditch your glasses and "see the world clearly again".
Too good to be true? The New Zealand Association of Optometrists (NZAO) believes Eyeright Vision's claims are misleading and unsubstantiated. The association says eye exercises can be beneficial for people with binocular vision problems – which relate to the ability of your eyes to focus simultaneously – but they're no cure for short- or long-sightedness.
The NZAO recently complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) about Eyeright Vision's ads, which claimed the company's "unique" programme restored eyesight. The ASA upheld the complaint, finding Eyeright had failed to provide the high level of substantiation needed to back its claims and the ads were likely to mislead consumers.
Eyeright Vision doesn't employ any registered optometrists and therefore doesn't come under the jurisdiction of the Optometrists and Dispensing Opticians Board. But it is bound by the Fair Trading Act, which prohibits companies from making misleading claims, and by the Medicines Act. This Act says ads must not claim a method of treatment has beneficially affected the health of a particular person or class of persons. Medsafe told us the information on the company's website may be a breach of the Medicines Act and it was following this up with Eyeright.
We've also asked Eyeright for evidence to back up its claims but the company hasn't provided any hard data. Chief executive Carl Jukes told us Eyeright had an optometrist reviewing its results but findings wouldn't be available until later this year. The company wouldn't give us the name of the optometrist.
We've yet to see anything to support Eyeright Vision's claim you'll be able to throw away your glasses. In our view, your $5000 would be better spent elsewhere.
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I've done eye exercises and they are very good for you. I was able to see more clearly as the exercises de-stress you eyes and relaxes them. I could definitely see an improvement when looking up numbers in the ph directory and I wasn't squinting to see things. After 8 wks I had an examination and my optomistrist found a very slight difference but not significant enough to change my prescription. Its all about how much effort you put in and whether you keep up with it.
This appears to be a version of the discredited Bates method - see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bates_method