Do you feel that? It’s heating up outside.
You know what that means – summertime is almost here! Time to grill out, go to the pool, escape on vacation, and simply enjoy the great outdoors.
No matter what you do this summer, I highly recommend you protect your eyes from the sun’s harmful UV rays.
Here are 5 reasons to protect your eyes from the sun with sunglasses all year long.
1) It’s the cool thing to do!
It’s no surprise that the recent trend of protecting your body from the sun has taken off. Why? Long-term exposure to the sun’s harmful UV rays can only lead to problems down the road. This includes the undesirable consequence of premature aging.
Your eyes are no exception to this! By wearing sunglasses while outdoors, you’ll keep your eyes protected and prevent long-term sun damage from taking place.
2) You’ll decrease your risk for eye growths
Have you ever seen those yellow bumps on the white part of the eye that appears to pop out when you look at someone? These are known as pingueculas and are a product of the sun’s harmful UV rays.
How about those white, fleshy growths that extend from the white part of the eye over the top of the iris? Those are known as pterygiums and, you guessed it, are also from harmful UV sun exposure.
Fortunately, both of these eye diseases can be prevented by wearing 100% UVA and UVB sun protection!
3) You’ll slow the early onset of cataracts
A cataract is a very common condition where the lens in the eye – similar to the lens of a camera – clouds up. Fortunately, age-related cataracts are a normal part of life (just like getting wrinkles or grey hair).
With this in mind, wearing 100% UVA and UVB sun protection helps decrease the early onset of cataracts. Nowadays cataract surgery is safe and technologically advanced. Still, there is no reason to jump in line for it early!
4) You’ll decrease your risk for macular degeneration
Macular degeneration is an eye disease where there is damage to the macula, the area in the eye responsible for capturing your central vision.
Unlike cataracts, this is not a normal part of the aging process. In fact, the damage that occurs from macular degeneration is permanent and can cause you to go blind. While there are exciting new treatment options available, we still have a long way to go for a cure.
5) You’ll look good doing so
Now that I got the serious consequences of not protecting your eyes out of the way, I figured I’d end with a fun one. Wearing sunglasses will make you look good and feel great!
I mean, who doesn’t LOVE wearing sunglasses! They provide you with outstanding eye protection, improved visual comfort, and can make you look and feel like a rockstar (or like Tom Cruise in Risky Business).
Final thoughts
Wearing sunglasses to protect your eyes from the sun is an absolute no-brainer.
Fashion reasons aside, you’ll SEE and feel the benefits immediately. That’s why I recommend wearing 100% UVA and UVB protection sunglasses all year round, your eyes will thank you later!
Curious if you could benefit from prescription sunglasses?
Schedule an eye exam with one of our doctors of optometry today!
Give us a call or simply schedule online: Northlake Mall | Concord Mills | Biltmore Park | Asheville Mall