Infant Vision Development: Why are Baby’s Eyes Crossed?
Summary
- Infant vision development involves coordination of eye muscles, which can cause crossing or wandering of the eyes in the first 2-4 months.
- By 0-3 months, babies begin tracking objects as their eyes learn to work together, followed by developing depth perception around 4 months.
- If by 4 months baby’s eyes don't appear to move together, talk to a healthcare provider to learn more!
Baby’s vision develops quite a bit in the early months! From the colors they can see to how their eyes move, infant vision development changes a lot in these early days.
You may notice your infant’s eyes don’t always move together.
In the first 2-4 months of baby’s life, their eyes may cross, wander, or look generally unfocused. Don’t worry, this is a typical part of infant vision development!
We all have muscles in our eyes that help us move them and focus them. In the early months, these muscles are still developing. That’s why your little one may sometimes look like their eyes are crossing or wandering, because they’re still developing the strength to coordinate their eyes.
As their eyes begin working together, baby will start tracking objects.
This is a 0-3 month milestone! Baby will follow an object that is slowly moved in front of their face. Try it out with a toy and see if your little one follows along! Tip: High contrast toys are easier for newborns to focus and follow.
Baby will also begin to develop their depth perception.
Depth perception tells us how far away things are in space. Around 4 months, their eyes will start coordinating together and their depth perception will develop. This is a very helpful ability to have when baby starts moving around on their own! They’ll know how far away a toy is and crawl to it, or how high they need to reach to pull themselves up to walk along the couch.
If baby was born premature, keep an “eye” on their vision development. Premature babies may have a higher chance for vision issues, but there is so much that can be done to help their vision at a young age! It’s recommended that premature infants see a pediatric eye doctor by 1 to 2 years of age.
If baby’s eyes don’t appear to move together by 4 months, talk to a healthcare provider.
About 1 in every 20 children may have an eye condition that causes their eyes to be misaligned. The earlier these conditions are addressed, the better! If you notice that they have one eye that appears to wander, appears turned out constantly, or if their eyes look crossed, a healthcare provider will help get baby’s vision on the right track.
