The Importance of Wearing Sunglasses
Ultraviolet damage to the eye is cumulative, painless and entirely preventable. Here is what it actually does.
The damage is cumulative and silent
Ultraviolet exposure to the eye adds up over decades and gives you no warning while it is happening. It is associated with cataract, with pterygium, and with cancers of the eyelid — which is thin skin that almost nobody puts sunscreen on.
Dark is not the same as protective
A dark lens with no UV filter is worse than no lens at all: the pupil opens behind it and lets more ultraviolet through than it would in daylight. Look for UV400, which means the lens blocks everything below 400 nanometres, and treat tint depth as a comfort decision.
- Look for UV400, not for how dark the lens is
- Wear them in winter and on overcast days too
- Children's eyes transmit more UV than adults'
"By the time a patient notices the damage, they have had forty years of it."
Dr. Hannah Lee
Children first
A child's lens is clearer than an adult's and transmits considerably more ultraviolet to the retina, and children spend far more time outdoors. If there is one pair in a household worth buying properly, it is theirs.
