How to Keep Your Eyes Safe with Safety Glasses

Safety glasses are used to protect the eyes during activities that can involve an eye injury. Safety glasses minimize injury risks during activities like sports, woodworking and some types of art like sculpting, lampworking, quartzworking, welding or metalworking, and while on the job in industries like construction. According to a survey, 10 to 20% of injuries occurring at work result in permanent or temporary vision loss. Therefore, there is a critical need to protect your eyes from any potential injury. There are many Safety glasses available in the market that can protect against work hazards, including eye injuries from flying bits of glass or metal, chemicals in the air and harmful radiation. Prescription safety glasses have become a part of the tool kit for many professionals, including the people in the construction trades (e.g. welders), and in military and law enforcement careers. Below is a brief overview on the types of safety and recreational glasses available in the market and their use:

Driving Glasses

If your eyes are sensitive and the glare of the headlights bother you while driving at night, you should invest in driving glasses. Clear lenses with AR Coating are one of the best options for night time driving as it minimizes internal reflections within the lenses, reducing halo problems, and increases the transmittance of light through the lens to the eye. My personal favorite general purpose lens for driving at night is our Sheer Glare peach/light beige AR coated lens.  I find these to be most effective for various driving conditions.  They do a much better job at eliminating a portion of the glare from the headlights than the clear ones.  Yellow is another option for night driving lenses.  These will sharpen and enhance your viewing area.  One negative of these lenses is they give the driver a feeling of seeing better, but on the other hand, the reverse actually happens. However, there is no magic wand that can improve night time driving. Get your eyes examined regularly and wear an up-to-date prescription. If you have regular problems while driving at night, consult an ophthalmologist.

Computer Glasses

Spending a significant time on your computer? You need to have computer glasses as a protective measure to save your eyes. We carry various lens tints and Gunnar Optiks glasses for computer work.  You can also get the computer lenses in reading glasses and they lessen the symptoms associated with Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS). Headaches, tired eyes, burning eyes, watering eyes, itching eyes, dry eyes, double vision, blurred vision, eye fatigue, bloodshot eyes, sore eyes, irritated eyes and eye pain are some of the symptoms of CVS. Computer eye glasses relieve eye strain headaches caused by eye muscle fatigue.

Radiation Protection Glasses

Radiation Protection glasses are worn by people who are at potential risk of radiation exposure because of their specific work demands. This protective eye wear is designed for people working in X-ray labs, hospitals, etc.  They shield the sensitive parts of the eye from ionizing radiation. The eyes, being the most sensitive area of the body, are most vulnerable to radiation. They should be safeguarded from damage by using high-quality lead glasses for each and every x-ray procedure. Medical facilities should take adequate steps to protect their medical personnel and patients by implementing the use of radiation glasses for hospital, dental practice and x-ray labs.

Sports Protection Glasses

There are also eye protectors used by sportsmen to protect the eye from insects, dust, wind blast, etc. Skiers should use effective sun shields to protect their eyes from UV rays from the sun. Infection control glasses can be used for protection against eye flu infections. Polarized glasses are helpful to fisherman for fishing and for outdoor water sports by reducing the reflective glare. We also carry a full line of riding glasses in polarized and non polarized lens styles.

Protective Sunglasses

People wear sunscreen to protect their skin while going out in the harsh sunlight and wearing sunglasses does the same for your eyes. Exposure to bright sunlight by the naked eye may increase the risk of developing cataracts, age related muscular degeneration and growths on the eye, including cancer. However, not all sunglasses provide the same eye shield protection. The quality of a good sunglass should be that it blocks UV rays. Don’t be deceived by color or cost. The ability to block UV light is not dependent on the price tag or how dark the sunglass lenses are. Also, make sure the sunglasses block 100% of UVA and UVB rays. They should also wrap all the way around to your temples so the sun’s rays can’t enter from the side. Even if your wear corrective lenses, it is important to protect your eyes from the sun’s rays.

Laser Safety Glasses

Moderate and high-power lasers are potentially hazardous because they can burn the retina of the eye. This can be prevented by wearing laser safety goggles when operating lasers. Laser safety glasses provide CE certified laser radiation protection. The comfortable frame style can be used over the top of prescription lenses and has top and side shields to protect the user’s eyes from peripheral laser radiation.