Peripheral vision
The human eye is a work of art of nature. It includes a combination of lenses and muscles that work together to send information to the brain , then transformed into images. Peripheral vision is just a part of our ability to see, and there are a number of very interesting aspects related to this area of vision.
As we always look ahead, many of us assume that central vision is the most important. This is not true. For example, central vision is not essential to the overall view. Only with the periphery we can have a complete picture. It’s amazing how dependent we are, and how much we use it without being aware of it.
The significance of peripheral vision is best emphasized during driving. This means we do not have to turn our head every time we want to see sideways, being able to look forward, but use the side mirrors at the same time without losing our focus on the road, thus avoiding accidents.
Did you know that?
From the scientific point of view, the peripheral vision is that area of the visual field, outside the central vision area. So when we say that “we see the tail of the eye” we are referring to this segment of vision.
- Peripheral vision is an aspect of our safety. It allows us to see objects approaching us sideways to avoid accidents, for example.
- Peripheral vision helps us see at night.
- In the peripheral vision area, we see everything in black and white, but this is not noticeable because the eye movement compensates for this.
- Most people read using only central vision, which prevents them from seeing more than 50% of the text. A peripheral trained view increases the ability to read texts faster.