Why Is It Important To Wear Sunglasses?

Women wear sunglasses for a lot of different reasons. Some because they are cute and are made by a designer that they like. Others because the sun is bright, and it helps them see better when they are driving. But why is it important to wear sunglasses? There are some good reasons you need to know about it!

Yes, I went down another rabbit hole again. This time it was about sunglasses and how they protect our eyes. It’s amazing what we don’t know until we know! Lol!  

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UVA & UVB Rays

The skin around our eyes and on our eyelids is delicate. UVA and UVB rays from the sun can damage the skin, cornea, lens, and other parts of the eye.

The worst part of the day is being out in the sun is different for the skin and the eyes.

Skin:  Avoid being out in the sun between 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM. That is when it is the most intense.

Eyes: Depending on the time of the year. Generally, it is the most intense on your eyes when the sun is coming up over the horizon and down in the evening. You know when the sun is glaring right into your eyes.

Cataracts – UVA & UVB Sun Damage

Cataracts are cloudiness of the lens of the eye. It is common with age to have cataracts and oftentimes you must have surgery to correct them. As you get older the lens gets cloudier and cloudier. Exposure to UVB rays speeds up this process.

UVB rays speed up the process of cataracts. And studies have shown that by protecting eyes from UVB rays cataracts can be reduced by 50%.

Cancer & Sunburns

Yes, you can get cancer on your eyelid. Along with intraocular tumors from exposure to UV rays. Yikes!

Can your eyes get sunburned? Basically, yes, they can. You can get cornea burns and photokeratitis. Also, sunburn to the tissue covering the eye. In most cases, experts say it can heal but the damage has been done.

I think we have all heard, never look directly at the sun. It can blind you with a photochemical injury to your retina in less than a second! This can also happen when wearing your sunglasses so please don’t try to look at the sun while wearing them. This can give us a false sense of security.

Wrinkles & Fine Lines

I mentioned earlier that the skin around our eyes and on our eyelids is delicate. That skin is thin and is more prone to fine lines and wrinkles.

When we don’t wear sunglasses out in the sun or bright light we tend to squint. This repeated motion causes wrinkles around your eyes, better known as “crow’s feet.”

The sun can also change the skin’s overall texture along with “dark spots”. Speaking of our skin’s overall texture and the effect that age can have on it you might want to read our blog post, 3 Ways Aging Affects Our Skin. You can read that here.

What Do Ophthalmologists Say About Wearing Sunglasses?

• Be sure that your sunglasses have 100% UV protection. Some may say UV absorption up to 400nm is the same thing.
• The darker the sunglass lens doesn’t mean more protection from UV rays.
• Polarized lenses only reduce glare. It doesn’t block UV rays.
• Size matters! The bigger the lens the more protection it will give your eyes.
• Being more expensive doesn’t make a pair of sunglasses better. Look for UV protection.
• Sunglasses will NOT protect your eyes from looking directly into the sun.
• You can read more about what the experts recommend here.

I hope this post helped you today as much as it did me after I went down the rabbit hole of why it’s important to wear sunglasses! Unfortunately, I think we take our sight for granted sometimes. We need to protect it.

Do you try to wear sunglasses whenever possible? Did any of these things surprise you? Please share your thoughts below in the comments.