Every sports activity requires a different skill set for success, yet all sports share a critical need for good vision. Twenty20 Vision Center offers an extensive collection of performance eyewear and a wide selection of performance contacts.
Geraint Griffiths, a British optometrist, conducted a study to explore the impact of visual acuity on sports performance. In this study, Wimbledon tennis players and UK national clay pigeon shooters were given special vision-blurring goggles to wear while competing. The results were telling: despite only a slight blurring of vision, the athletes’ performance dropped by 25%. This study strongly illustrated the critical connection between clear vision and athletic success.
However, visual clarity is just one advantage of sports eyewear. There are numerous other features in sports eyewear that not only enhance performance but also significantly improve eye safety.
According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, over 42,000 sports-related eye injuries occur annually in the United States, with about 43% of those injuries affecting children under the age of 15. Most of these injuries could be prevented by using protective eyewear, such as safety goggles with polycarbonate lenses.
Unlike regular eyeglasses, which are designed for everyday use, sports eyewear is built to endure the rigors of athletic activities. Regular glasses offer minimal protection, while contact lenses provide no protection against sports-related eye injuries. On the other hand, sports eyewear is specifically designed to be highly impact-resistant, offering superior protection and reducing the risk of eye injuries. Polycarbonate lenses, which are about 10 times more impact-resistant than standard lenses, can withstand impacts, such as a ball traveling at speeds up to 90 miles per hour.
It’s recommended to wear safety eyewear for any activity where eye injuries are possible. Certain sports, including softball, baseball, hockey, football, basketball, handball, squash, racquetball, tennis, volleyball, soccer, and lacrosse, present a higher risk of eye injuries. Additionally, all swimming and pool sports require specialized eye gear, and paintball players should make safety eyewear a critical part of their equipment.
Harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation can be just as damaging to your eyes as other injuries. A number of eye diseases, such as ocular tumors, macular degeneration, and cataracts, have been associated with exposure to UV rays. Photokeratitis, which refers to sunburn on your eye, is another hazard. This painful condition can cause long-term corneal damage.
Dangerous UV rays are more potent at higher altitudes and also bounce off snow or outdoor water, which increases exposure. It is imperative for skiers and anyone who enjoys outdoor water sports to wear sports sunglasses or tinted goggles that block 100% of the sun’s UV rays.
Some types of contact lenses provide UV protection, yet they only cover the central part of your eye. For this reason, sunglasses that block UV rays should still be worn, preferably in a wraparound style that also covers the delicate tissues surrounding your eyes. Hats with a wide brim will upgrade your protection by further reducing facial exposure to UV rays.
Special tinted eyewear may add a winning edge to your game. Depending upon the lighting conditions, it’s not always simple to “keep your eye on the ball”. Hunters favor shooting glasses with amber tinted lenses, which highlight the contrast of birds flying against an overcast, dim sky. Golfers tend to gain the largest benefit from green tinted lenses.
A wide range of specialized tints for specific indoor and outdoor sports are available. These lenses can improve visibility and contrast in a diversity of environments. Ask your eye doctor or optician for more information about which lenses can help raise your scores.
Reflective surfaces, such as a flat body of water, a sandy beach or even light-colored pavement, can disturb your vision with glare. Polarized sunglasses are one effective way to resolve this problem.
Another glare reducer is to add an anti-reflective (AR) component to your lenses. At night, sports eyewear with AR will diminish lens reflections when playing under bright lights or spotlights. It’s a good idea to apply AR to the back surface of sport sunglasses in order to decrease the glare that bounces into your eyesight when sunlight hits the back of your lenses.
You can control the light that enters your eye by wearing photochromic lenses. These clear lenses transition automatically into dark lenses upon exposure to UV rays. They also offer 100% UV protection, and return quickly to their former clear state when you go indoors.
Many advantages come along with wearing contact lenses for sports, even if you normally wear eyeglasses on a daily basis:
The best contact lens choice for sports is soft one-day disposables. There’s no need to clean them and you can toss them in the garbage at the end of the day. The flexible, oxygen-permeable material of one-day soft lenses also requires very little adaptation. They can be inserted easily and worn comfortably for a full day of physical activity.
Although contact lenses offer high convenience and comfort, there are still a number of disadvantages with wearing contacts for sports. No protection against eye injury is provided and they don’t offer sufficient UV protection. For ultimate performance and safety, you need to wear quality protective eyewear or sunglasses over your lenses.
With 2 convenient locations serving the region, you are never more than a short drive away from a Twenty20 Vision Center location! Schedule an appointment at one of our optical clinics today!