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Wear Your Sunglasses!

  • Ron 

Thursday, June 27 is National Sunglasses Day and while it may look like an excuse to get you to buy something, it’s no joke that you should be protecting your eyes.

Sunglasses provide protection from harmful UV radiation. The damage from UV rays accumulates over time, so it’s never to late to start protecting your eyes. If you have kids, they’re especially susceptible to damage, so make sure that they’re wearing their shades, too.

If you’re riding a bike regularly, sunglasses should be part of your protection regimen, right along with helmets and gloves. I don’t need to tell you that all kinds of crap (including crap) get thrown up from road and trail surfaces and you don’t want ANY of that getting into your eyes.

Did you know that sunglasses are good for your face, too? Crows feet and age lines around your eyes make you look older than you are. If you’re wearing sunglasses, you’re less likely to be squinting and developing those ugly wrinkles.

Personally, I’ve been a religious wearer of sunglasses since getting contacts at the age of 16. My vision is still pretty good and my face looks 10 years younger than other folks my age. No complaints here on either front.

Buying Tips:

  1. Despite the health risks of UV exposure, not all sunglasses have UV protection. Since UV protection is crucial to shielding eyes from damaging radiation, it is imperative to look for a label, sticker or tag indicating UV protection before purchasing a pair of sunglasses.
  2. UV protection has nothing to do with the darkness or color of a lens. Wearing sunglasses with dark lenses without adequate UV protection can actually be worse than wearing no sunglasses at all because they cause the eye’s pupil to dilate, which then increases retinal exposure to the unfiltered UV.
  3. Children receive three times the annual sun exposure of adults, increasing their susceptibility to UV eye damage. And, unlike the mature ocular lens of an adult eye, a child’s immature lens cannot filter out UV as easily. The need for UV protection for children is compounded by the fact that it is easier to find youth sunglasses that do not provide adequate UV protection. That’s why parents should always have their children‘s sunglasses tested for UV protection.
  4. UV rays are just as dangerous on cloudy days as they are on clear days. Just like skin, eyes can accumulate harmful UV radiation on overcast days so be sure to wear proper eye and skin protection while outside.
  5. Similar to cloudy days, cold days also carry UV risk. The sun is present year-round, which means UV rays are a constant regardless of weather. UV rays can’t be seen, but their long-term effects are extremely damaging to the eyes.

Like I said, I’m not trying to sell you anything, but I definitely want to share some of my favorites. You can hardly  go wrong with a classic pair of Aviators or Wayfarers from Ray Ban. For more aviator styles, I also like Randolph Engineering and American Optical. If, like me, you spend a lot of time on a bike, there’s a lot of good products to be found from Oakley, Rudy Project and Smith. SunSkis are a recent discovery and look to have some good products as well.

Find your style and wear them!

Tags: bike, Electromagnetic radiation, Eyewear, health, helmet, Ophthalmology, Prevention, protection, Rudy Project, Smith, style, sunglasses, Ultraviolet
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