Benefits of Sunglasses to Prevent Eye Disease

 

Not a few people actually feel uncomfortable using sunglasses. The reasons are varied, one of which is fear of being considered strange or pretentious. In fact, sunglasses have an important role to protect the eyes from the dangers of sunlight.

Morning sun is good for health. But, it's different with the sun at midday. The strongest ultraviolet (UV) radiation occurs between 10 am and 4 pm. UV radiation can endanger eye health, so the eyes need protection in the form of sunglasses.

Prevent Various Eye Diseases

For the sake of guarding eye health, you should begin to put aside shame in wearing sunglasses. Because UV radiation that enters the eye without protection can cause various eye diseases, such as pterygium, cataracts, pingueculae, photokeratitis, and photoconjunctivitis.

• Cataract
  Cataract is a visual disorder that causes vision to become cloudy. People with cataracts will feel vision becomes blurred and sensitive to dazzling light. Generally, cataracts occur due to aging, where when entering the age of 40 years, the protein in the lens of the eye begins to be susceptible to damage. Exposure to UV light can be one of the risk factors to accelerate the occurrence of cataracts.
• Pterygium
  This condition is characterized by a yellowish or reddish membrane that grows on the white part of the eye. In some cases, this tissue grows to the cornea. The growth of pterygium can be triggered by frequent exposure to UV rays and dust.
  Pterygium generally occurs in someone who spends a lot of time in the sun, lives in a warm climate and often neglects wearing sunglasses. This growing tissue is indeed not cancerous, but if it becomes more disturbing or has covered the cornea and disrupts vision, surgery is needed to remove it.
• Pingueculae
  This eye disorder is characterized by Yellow lumps on the conjunctival part (the clear and thin membrane lining the white surface of the eyeball) near the cornea. This condition often resembles pterygium. The cause is the same, namely frequent eye exposure to sunlight without using sunglasses.
• Photoconjunctivitis and photokeratitis
  Exposure to ultraviolet light, natural or artificial, that occurs over a long period of time causing the cornea to be severely damaged or burned. This condition is called photokeratitis. A person affected by photokeratitis will experience dizziness, painful and continuous watery eyes, swollen eyelids, red eyes, or temporary visual loss. While photoconjunctvitis is a condition in which the eye conjunctiva is inflamed after a few hours of exposure to the sun, and can be very painful.

Choose and Wear Sunglasses

Choosing sunglasses is not just for style. You also have to consider the type and effectiveness in protecting from UV rays. Good sunglasses are capable of blocking 100% UV radiation.

Choose a dark-colored lens with evenly distributed lens darkness. But it must be remembered, dark-colored lenses are not a guarantee if the glasses are effective against harmful UV rays. Currently there are also many glasses with green, blue, or pink lenses. This lens does not block more UV light, but can be an option for athletes because of the sharper contrast. Then choose large sunglasses. The bigger the better, because it can prevent UV rays from entering the eye from the side.

Of the types of lenses, some types of sunglasses that you can choose include:

• Sunglasses with polarizing lenses.
• Polycarbonate lenses.
• Glasses with lenses block blue light from electronics.
• Photochromic lenses.
• Glasses with gradient lenses.

Use sunglasses when you are playing directly in the hot sun, while playing on the beach, and exercising. Keep in mind, prices do not always guarantee the effectiveness of glasses in blocking UV rays. A low-priced sunglasses are as effective as expensive if you have 100% protection against UV rays. But it's good to buy sunglasses in optics that are trusted or consult an ophthalmologist first, to get sunglasses that are appropriate and have good quality.

Eyes are a very important sensory tool. Take good care of your eye health and use sunglasses that have UV protection, so as not to cause eye problems later on. In fact, teaching your child to use sunglasses from an early age also needs to be done to maintain the health of their eyes.