SOMERSET men are being urged to attend regular sight tests or risk endangering their vision and wider health.

As part of Men's Health Week (June 14-21), Paul Brunning from Blagdon is encouraging men to care for their eye health to avoid irreversible sight loss.

The push comes as many people missed out on attending vital eye tests during lockdown.

A study by the RNIB shows men are at greater risk of losing their sight compared to women because they ignore warning signs and do not seek medical attention.

Mr Brunning, 72, recently had cataracts removed from both eyes, with the second operation being at Newmedica Bristol, which also has a clinic in Frome.

He said: "My sight is incredibly important to me, as it is to everyone. When my cataracts developed, I found it difficult to drive at night and I found reading was a strain. I also had to give up clay pigeon shooting because I kept missing.

"Since the operations, I now have great clarity of vision. I can read again and will be taking up clay pigeon shooting once more. If my cataracts had not been diagnosed and treated, my quality of life would have been greatly affected.

"I am told that men are more prone to putting off their eye test and other health tests, perhaps because they fear the outcome, which is madness. It’s so important to attend routine eye tests, because they can help to detect many eye conditions."

Among the conditions that eye tests can spot are cataracts, glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration. All these conditions can be easily treated if picked up early enough.

In some cases, eye tests can even detect problems indicating the presence of a brain tumour – from which Mr Brunning’s father died – before symptoms become obvious.

Tim Manners, Newmedica’s Medical Director, said: "Fifty percent of sight loss is avoidable, but during the pandemic many people may have had to delay an eye test or felt nervous about visiting their optician.

"Glaucoma is easily detected by an eye examination but can remain without symptoms for years while it progresses, and when sight loss happens it is irreversible.

"In most cases visual loss from glaucoma can be prevented by simple treatment as long as this common condition is picked up.

"It is important to make an appointment with your optometrist if you are seeing things such as new or changed floaters, or blurred vision.

"However, it is also important to keep up your regular eye checks – even if you don’t think there is anything wrong with your vision – because something could be happening of which you are completely unaware."