We can probably all recount at least a dozen weird and alarming things parents, teachers, and older siblings told us about our eyes when we were kids. For instance, we'd be permanently cross-eyed if we didn't stop making those faces at our brother or we'd go blind from reading in the dark. But maybe, just maybe, we could find redemption by eating lots of carrots. Here are a few common myths and misconceptions.
我們都能回憶起自己小時候，父母、老師和哥哥姐姐們曾經告訴過我們的那些有關視力怪異又嚇人的事情。比如，如果我們再繼續向哥哥扮鬼臉，以后就會變成斗雞眼，又或者在黑暗中閱讀眼睛會瞎掉。但是，如果我們吃很多很多的胡蘿卜，也許我們的眼睛還有救。以下就是關于視力的幾個常見的誤解和迷思。

MYTH #1: IF YOU CROSS YOUR EYES, THEY'LL STAY THAT WAY.
誤解1：如果你裝成斗雞眼，那么你將一直是斗雞眼

Crossed eyes occur when your eyes don't look the same way at the same time. There are six muscles attached to each of our eyes that, guided by signals from the brain, control their movements. When your eyes don't align, the brain gets two different images. Over time, this can cause more serious vision issues. That's a real problem, but it's not caused by making your eyes cross on purpose for short periods of time.
斗雞眼只有在你的兩只眼睛沒有同時看向同一個方向的時候才會出現。我們的每只眼睛周圍有六塊肌肉，它們由大腦中的信號控制。你的兩只眼睛若是沒有對齊，那么你的大腦就會得到兩幅不同的圖像。隨著時間的流逝，這會造成更加嚴重的視力問題。不過你短暫地裝一下斗雞眼并不能達到這種效果。

MYTH #2. EATING CARROTS WILL HELP YOU SEE IN THE DARK.
誤解2：吃胡蘿卜能增強你的夜間視力

Well, carrots certainly aren't bad for your eyesight. They contain plenty of beta-carotene, which your body converts into vitamin A, a crucial vitamin for vision. But carrots don't do anything exceptional for your nighttime vision.
其實胡蘿卜對你的視力沒有壞處，它們含有豐富的β-胡蘿卜素，隨后你的身體會將它們變成維他命A，這種維他命對視力至關重要。但胡蘿卜無法讓你的夜間視力變得超常。

MYTH #3: THE BIGGER YOUR EYES, THE BETTER YOUR EYESIGHT.
誤解3：你的眼睛越大，視力越好。

When you're born, your eyeballs are approximately 16 millimeters in diameter, reaching 24 millimeters as an adult. But your eyes getting larger does not necessarily mean that your vision is getting better. In fact, excessive growth in human eyes can cause myopia, or nearsightedness. If the eyeball is too long, the eye's lens can't focus the light in the right part of the retina to process images clearly.
人類剛出生的時候，眼球直徑約為16毫米，成年后會達到24毫米。但你的眼睛變大了并不意味著你的視力變強了。事實上，人類眼睛過度增長會造成近視。如果眼球太長，那么眼睛的晶狀體就無法將光線聚集在視網膜的正確位置，人類也無法接收到清晰的圖像。

MYTH #4: PUPIL DILATION OCCURS ONLY IN RESPONSE TO CHANGES IN LIGHT.
誤解4：人眼只有在應對光線變化的時候才會出現瞳孔擴張。

Sexual arousal, solving a complicated mental math problem, fear, and other cognitive and emotional events can provoke changes in pupil size, though the precise reasons why are not yet clearly understood.
我們的情緒和精神狀態也會造成瞳孔擴張，性喚起、解決了復雜的數學問題和恐懼等都會讓瞳孔大小發生變化，不過人類并未完全了解其中的原因。

MYTH #5: UV RAYS CAN ONLY DAMAGE EYES WHEN THE SUN IS SHINING.
誤解5：只有陽光燦爛的時候紫外線才能損害我們的眼睛。

Even on cloudy and foggy days, ultraviolet (UV) radiation can cause eye damage. Years of exposure can increase your risk of developing cataracts.
即便在多云和大霧天氣，紫外線也會傷害我們的眼睛，多年持續下來會增大你患白內障的風險。

MYTH #6: WEARING GLASSES TOO MUCH CAN MAKE YOUR EYESIGHT WORSE.
誤解6：戴眼鏡越久近視越深。

Giving the correct prescription "reduces the progression of myopia."
戴度數合適的眼鏡會讓“近視度數增長變慢”。

MYTH #7: READING IN DIM LIGHT WILL DIMINISH YOUR EYESIGHT.
誤解7：在昏暗的燈光下閱讀會損害視力

While reading in semi-darkness may put a temporary strain on your eyes, it's not going to permanently damage your eyesight.
在昏暗的燈光下閱讀會暫時讓你的眼睛用力過度，但不會永久損害你的視力。

MYTH #8: IF YOUR PARENTS HAVE BAD EYESIGHT, YOU WILL, TOO.
誤解8：視力不好會遺傳。

You might, of course, because some eye problems are genetic. But there's no guarantee that we will develop the same vision impairments as our parents. One study found that if both parents are myopic, there's a 30 to 40 percent chance that the child is. If only one parent is myopic, the child has a 20 to 25 percent chance, and it's down to 10 percent for kids with non-myopic parents.
有些眼睛問題會遺傳，但這并不意味著我們視力受損的程度會與父母一致。有研究發現如果父母雙方是近視，那么他們孩子近視的概率為百分之三十至百分之四十。如果父母僅一人近視，那么孩子近視的概率為百分之二十至百分之二十五。若父母雙方均不近視，那么孩子近視的概率為百分之十。

MYTH #9: TOO MUCH SCREEN TIME WILL DESTROY YOUR EYESIGHT.
誤解9：盯屏幕時間過久會損害視力。

More and more people are complaining of symptoms like dry, irritated eyes after prolonged periods of screen time. The American Optometric Association (AOA) defines this group of symptoms collectively as Computer Vision Syndrome—or Digital Eye Strain—which can be further exacerbated by trying to focus on small screens such as tablets or phones. The AOA recommends following the 20-20-20 rule: Every 20 minutes, take a 20-second break to look at something 20 feet away.
越來越多人長時間盯著屏幕之后會眼干眼澀，美國眼科協會將這些癥狀統稱為計算機視覺綜合癥，繼續盯著小屏幕會讓這種癥狀加重。美國眼科協會建議人們遵循20-20-20規則：每隔二十分鐘，休息二十秒鐘，并試圖看看20英尺以外的東西。

MYTH #10: THE RIGHT "VITAMIN COCKTAIL" CAN PREVENT VISION DECLINE.
誤解10：正確的“維他命雞尾酒”能夠防止視力下降。

According to Harvard researchers, vitamins may help slow the progression of macular degeneration, but for people not already suffering from the disease, preventative use of such vitamins didn't appear to make a significant difference.
哈佛的研究人員指出，維他命也許能夠減緩黃斑退化的過程，但對于沒啥毛病的人來說，用這類維他命預防并沒有什么效果。

MYTH #11: DYSLEXIA IS LINKED TO VISION PROBLEMS.
誤解11：閱讀障礙與視力問題有關。

A recent study from Bristol and Newcastle Universities in the UK found that children with dyslexia were no more likely than others to suffer from common vision problems.
英國布里斯托爾和紐卡斯爾大學最近的研究發現，有閱讀障礙的兒童患有眼部疾病的幾率并不比其他孩子高。

MYTH #12: IF YOU DON'T TREAT LAZY EYE WHEN YOU'RE A SMALL CHILD, YOU'LL HAVE IT FOREVER.
誤解12：弱視不從小開始治療，就再也治不好了。

While doctors say that the sooner it's treated the better, there are an increasing number of remedies that can help adults as well.
雖然醫生說越早治療越好，但其實隨著科技的發展也有越來越多的技術能夠幫助弱視的成年人。

MYTH #13: BLIND PEOPLE SEE ONLY DARKNESS.
誤解13：盲人看到的只有一片黑暗。

Only 18 percent of people who have visual impairments are totally blind. Most are able to differentiate between light and dark.
只有百分之十八視力嚴重受損的人永久失明，大部分盲人能夠區分光明和黑暗。

MYTH #14: HUMAN VISION IS THE SAME IN SPACE AS IT IS ON EARTH.
誤解14：人類在地球和在太空中的視力一樣。

Actually, NASA scientists have found that space can impair our vision, though they still aren't sure why.
NASA發現，在太空中我們的視力會受損，但原因不明。

MYTH #15: PEOPLE WHO ARE COLORBLIND CAN'T SEE COLOR.
誤解15：色盲的人看不到色彩。

It's quite rare for someone not to see color at all. It's more common for color blind individuals to have difficulty differentiating between certain colors, like red and green, or blue and yellow. And while color blindness is far more common in males than females, it does affect a small percentage of women.
很少有人完全看不到色彩，色盲中較為常見的是人們難以區分特定的顏色，比如紅綠和黃藍。雖然色盲在男性群體中更為常見，但依舊有少數女性深受其擾。

Vocabulary

cataract: 白內障
macular degeneration: 黃斑退化；黃斑部病變
dyslexia: 閱讀障礙

英文來源：mentalfloss
翻譯&編輯：丹妮