Caring for Your Eyes
Your eyes are hard workers and deserve the utmost care, as we all know there is no price we would pay to give up our vision. There are many simple habits we can practice daily to maintain healthy eyes and retain our clear and colourful vision throughout our lives. Now, more than ever, we need to take care of our eyes, as research shows an approximate 150% increase in eye problems over the next 30 years! With factors like increased screen time and not wearing appropriate eye protection outdoors, it's no wonder our eyes are struggling. The first step to healthy eyes is understanding the potential damage these factors contribute to, and secondly, knowing how to prevent it.
So, What’s the Damage?
There are many ways overexposure to the sun’s UV rays can negatively impact your eyes and vision. Firstly, sun damage to the eyes is cumulative over your lifetime, meaning that even exposure at a young age can eventually lead to permanent effects on your eyesight. UVB rays affect the corneas, the front part of the eyes, causing light sensitivity and irritation. UVA rays penetrate more deeply, impacting the inner layers of the eyes. Both types of UV radiation contribute to several eye conditions, including Photokeratitis, Pterygium, and Cataracts, if your eyes are not properly protected from the sun.
How to Protect Your Eyes
1. Wear UV & Polarised Sunglasses
It is crucial for people of all ages to wear sunglasses that offer 100% UV protection when outdoors. However, UV lenses alone do not prevent glare from affecting your vision. Therefore, it's important to choose sunglasses that not only provide UV protection but are also polarised. Polarised lenses work by blocking glare caused by light reflecting off surfaces such as water, cars, snow, and sand, which can directly hit your eyes. This type of eye protection ensures you continue to see clearly and keep your eyes protected in various light conditions. Next time you shop for sunglasses, remember that polarised lenses are an excellent choice to maintain your eye health in the sun's harsh light.
1. Wear UV & Polarised Sunglasses
It is crucial for people of all ages to wear sunglasses that offer 100% UV protection when outdoors. However, UV lenses alone do not prevent glare from affecting your vision. Therefore, it's important to choose sunglasses that not only provide UV protection but are also polarised. Polarised lenses work by blocking glare caused by light reflecting off surfaces such as water, cars, snow, and sand, which can directly hit your eyes. This type of eye protection ensures you continue to see clearly and keep your eyes protected in various light conditions. Next time you shop for sunglasses, remember that polarised lenses are an excellent choice to maintain your eye health in the sun's harsh light.
2. Eye Care At Home
There are many ways to take care of your eyes at home. For starters, limiting screen time can significantly improve your eye health. However, this can be challenging as we increasingly rely on screens for everything! A helpful tip is the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away (about 6 metres) for 20 seconds. In the evening, it's important to minimise blue light exposure from devices. Wearing blue light-blocking glasses and reducing your screen's brightness settings can help prevent eye strain and minimise potential damage to your retina.
3. Eye Care For Kids
The effects of UV ray overexposure accumulate over time, so it's crucial to protect your eyes from a young age to prevent vision issues later in life. Children's eyes are especially vulnerable to retinal damage because their ocular lenses are still developing and cannot effectively filter UV light. It is highly recommended that all children wear sunglasses with 100% UVA and UVB protection whenever they are in the sun, particularly in high-glare situations like around water. A good rule of thumb for children wearing sunglasses is to ensure their eyes are not visible from either side of their face.
Top 8 Tips for Eye Health
Eye Conditions
What is Digital Eye Strain?
Caused by the overuse of computers and other digital devices, digital eye strain is a vision problem often experienced with symptoms such as discomfort of the eyes, dry eyes, fatigue, headaches and un-clear vision. Digital eye strain is a common occurrence in today's society, with most of us spending a good part of the day staring at digital screens.
What is Photokeratitis?
Photokeratitis is a temporary but usually painful eye condition caused by UV ray overexposure. This condition is said to be like a sunburn affecting the corneas of the eyes. Symptoms usually last from a few hours up to a couple of days in some cases. The best preventative is wearing sunglasses whenever you are exposed to the sun.
What are Cataracts?
Cataracts are the slow development of a cloudy-type window forming over the clear lens of the eye. The most common symptom of Cataracts is blurred vision, unable to see in dim lighting, and seeing less colour. The most common cause of Cataracts is ageing, with people usually over the age of 60 starting to have some form of clouding on the lens of the eyes if they suffer from these conditions.
What is Pterygium?
More commonly experienced by people who spend lots of time outdoors exposed to the sun, Pterygium is a triangular growth that begins on the clear tissues of one or both eyes and can spread to the cornea. Pterygium is a noncancerous, painless growth that may appear slightly raised with blood vessels. Symptoms may include irritation or eye discomfort.