Sunglasses – Sexy and Stylish While Protecting Your Eye Health!

You're probably exited about summer coming this year. But along with the nice weather and Mr Sunshine peaking out, you're probably aware that your eyes will be at risk. This is why you should purchase sunglasses, even though you don't need to wear glasses for your vision.

Sunglasses - What is UVR Damage?

Firstly, there are many ways to damage your eyes, and too much sunlight falling direct into your eyes is a big one. So it's vital to protect your eyes whether you're outside, especially when sunbaking at the beach.

Just like the skin, the sun’s UV rays can affect your eyes as well. Additionally, ultraviolet radiation, more commonly known as UVR, causes both long-term and short-term damage to your eyes.
When short-term damage occurs, you may have a feeling like there is sand in your eyes. Your eyes may experience difficulty when trying to look at bright lights, or your eyes may become swollen or water excessively.

You may also experience long-term damage like the your cornea suffering from sunburn. The sun doesn't just cause cancer of the skin either. As part of the long-term effect of sun damage, there is a possibility of developing cancer of your eye lids or of the membrane of covering of your eye (conjunctiva).

Cataracts – a condition that occurs when the lens of the eye becomes clouded – is also an issue that arises and causes problems with vision that can lead to permanent and total blindness.

Good Sunglasses Prevent Against UV Damage

A good pair of sunglasses has the ability to prevent the sun's UV rays from harming your eyes. Even though your eyes are more likely to experience damage during the summer months, the reflective glare from the snow is just as dangerous for your eyes.

Thus, you should always wear sunglasses year round to protect them. While some glasses are strictly for style purposes, a majority of sunglasses that are on the market today have an eye protection level or EPF.

Optimally, you should always look for a pair of sunglasses that has an EPF of 10 or as close to 10 as possible.

Australians were the first ones to implement a national standard for sunglasses. Then, the UK, USA, Germany and France followed suit. Prescription sunglasses are exempt from these standards, but an optometrist is still responsible for prescribing glasses that comply with these regulations.

Selecting Sunglasses

You may have been told that the darker lenses are better; however, darker isn't necessarily better. The coating on the lens determines the level of protection.

Some shades of lenses can cause changes to the color of objects, which can be dangerous especially when you're driving. Most of the colored lenses that are on the market today have a rating of six or less, so to be safe, you should avoid them completely.

Remember to leave your comments and thoughts below...