Most of us know how important it is to use sunscreen to protect our skin, but what about our eyes? We've all peered into the sun and used our hand to provide shade, but is this enough? Why are sunglasses important? Sunscreen protects our eyes from more than you might expect:
Sun damage The ultraviolet rays (UV) from the sun penetrate deep into the skin and damage cells around our eyes and eyelids. Without proper eye protection, prolonged overexposure to UV light can burn your eyes and increase the risk of cataracts, corneal damage and age-related eye disease, ultimately leading to blindness. Also, the retina can become scarred if it is exposed to strong direct sunlight. It is worth remembering that reflected sunlight from snow, water, ice, sand and tanning beds is just as dangerous and can cause permanent damage to our eyes. This means that the sun not only harms our eyes during the summer months, it can also harm them on the crisp, cold sunny days in winter that we often have.
See also:The latest sunglasses for 2019
Periocular skin cancer Another risk of sun damage to the eyes is eyelid and periocular skin cancer, the area of skin near your eye. Eyelid cancers are relatively slow-growing, but they can spread to the lymph nodes in the head and neck. It is therefore vital that you seek medical advice if you notice that the appearance of your skin around your eyes is changing.
What else can we do to protect our eyes?
To prevent eye damage when out in the sun, wear a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses to reduce the amount of UV rays reaching your face and eyes. Sunglasses are also important for children, as their ocular lenses are thought to transmit much more light than adults.
What should you pay attention to when wearing sunglasses? Good quality sunglasses protect the eyes from 99 – 100% UV light. The good news is that the price or brand of the glasses is not important, but they do need to be CE marked to ensure their effectiveness. Children and those with light-colored irises are most at risk of being damaged, so they definitely need sunglasses.
