It’s a beautiful, bright day and you’re headed for the beach or pool. You have your towels, sun lotion, refreshing drinks, and toys for the kids. That’s all great, but what about quality sunglasses for everyone in the family? They are, after all, every bit as important as that sun lotion you just bought or the vitamins and medications you take to protect other parts of your body.
We’ve all heard about reflections from the water, but, if the beach is your destination, did you know reflections from the sand there can also hurt unprotected eyes and be a contributing cause of what’s called photokeratitis, which is basically a sunburn of your eyes.
The benefits of sporting sunglasses at the beach or pool don’t just stop there, though. They also protect your skin…that super sensitive area around the eyes. These are just a few of the reasons everyone in the family should wear sunglasses. As the John Hopkins School of Medicine points out, “Wearing sunglasses as frequently as possible from a young age is key to minimizing…damage to the eye and surrounding tissues” (Source).
PROTECTION
All well-made sun wear offers protection, and there are lots of choices when it comes to lens materials in the sunglasses you choose. If you do a lot of yardwork, “Sunglasses that are made of a polycarbonate material can act like a safety glass, so they give the added benefit of protecting you from things flying in your eye while mowing the lawn or working in your yard,” explains Baylor College of Medicine ophthalmologist Masih Ahmed, M.D.(Source).
Just as polycarbonate is a super safety material, so polarized lenses offer great protection from the sun when you’re on or near the water. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, polarized lenses have a special “chemical applied to them to filter light. The lenses block all the horizontal light waves bouncing off a smooth pond or a shiny car hood, for instance” (Source).
TIC TOC
While it’s best to consider your sunglasses a must-wear accessory and keep them on whenever you’re outside this summer, there are certain times of day when the sun’s intensity is most likely to affect your eye health and vision if you don’t wear them.
Most of us assume midday is the most critical time to sport your sunnies. In fact, early morning and late afternoon are just as important because those are the hours when the sun can actually do the most damage to your eyes.
All this is why it’s so important not just to wear sunnies, but to make sure the lenses in them are high quality and offer the most protection. One spectacle lens company, Shamir, based in sunny San Diego, is dedicated to providing you just that…the best!
So, by all means, pack that big beach ball and the oversized beach towel when you head for the water. Just make sure you’ve also included quality sunglasses for every member of the family.
Have fun. Be safe. And book your next appointment with us to ask about what Shamir sun lens options are best for you. Learn more here about the importance of sunglasses.
I’ve recently come across some really great explanations of how polarized lenses work to reduce glare – and I hope to shed some light (pun intended) on how these work- so you can hopefully gain a new appreciation of this great technology!
Non polarized sunglasses indiscriminately filter all light- horizontal and vertical. They reduce glare but don’t eliminate it.
Whenever you spend time outside, there are easy ways to protect your eyes from the sun to help reduce the risks discussed above. Wearing quality sunglasses that provide 100% protection against UV-A and UV-B radiation is the first step. Transition lenses (that darken in sunlight) also provide 100% UV protection. Wrap-around sunglasses provide the most amount of protection. Don’t forget about protecting children and young adults eyes too! They typically spend the most time in the sun. Therefore, implementing the sunglasses habit can make the biggest impact to their long term eye health. It does this by reducing the amount of accumulative hours of UV exposure!