Introduction
People who usually spend most of their time outdoors can opt for polarized lenses to protect their eyes from high glare hitting their eyes. Polarized eye lenses help reduce glare, improve visibility, and provide additional clarity and protection to the eyes. Polarized eye lenses are one of the several ways to protect the eyes from high glare. It is similar to protecting the skin from skin burns. Polarized eye lenses help to protect the eyes from eye burns.
What Are Polarized Lenses?
Polarized lenses help to eliminate glare and improve the clarity of vision. They can also reduce eye strain, which is especially helpful when one works in outdoor fields. Polarized lenses are great for keeping the sun out of the eyes, but they can also help protect the eyes from harmful glare. Glare is not the same thing as light. Light is a form of electromagnetic radiation and does not affect the eyes. Glare occurs when the light reflected off a surface hits the eye and reflects back at it. This can cause discomfort, vision impairment, and even eye damage on failing to protect the eyes.
Polarized lenses block glare by reflecting light differently than standard sunglasses do. In other words, polarized lenses block 99 percent of all visible light and let only one percent through. Due to these unique characteristics, polarized lenses protect the eyes from harmful glare while also allowing enough natural light to enter and see clearly without squinting or straining.
How to Recognize Polarized Lenses?
It is roughly easy to understand whether the sunglasses are polarized. In order to do so, one must try to look at a reflective surface both with and without the lenses. Polarized lenses will reduce the glare from bright light and increase contrast. Hence, it will be easier for the person to view and see things in bright light. Looking at an LCD screen, one can also understand whether or not the sunglasses are polarized. One may find it difficult to view objects, have a clear vision, and may seem black or very dark while looking at an LCD screen.
What Are the Benefits of Using Polarized Lenses?
Polarized lenses are designed to let in light only from one direction, increasing contrast and visibility. They are usually used for enhanced outdoor visibility and sports. For example, a polarized lens can be used for snowboarding by blocking out the glare of the snow, outdoor sports activities like golf, horse riding, and so on, allowing one to see the ground more clearly.
There are several benefits of using polarized lenses:
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Better clarity and visibility while performing high-glare activities.
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Helps to build and increase contrast to identify objects better in high-glare environments.
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With polarized lenses, there is minimal color distortion.
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There is reduced glare and reflection.
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Reduced strain on the eyes and prevents eye damage.
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Improves vision and proves to be a better option for people who spend most of their time in sports activities, agricultural fields, construction, and people involved in outdoor occupations.
How Do Polarized Lenses Work?
Polarized lenses work by protecting the eyes from light glare hitting the eyes. They help prevent eye damage and vision abnormalities that may occur as a consequence. A person can see and view when the light rays hit the eye that reflects off the object. The light scatters in different directions and bounces off at different angles on an uneven surface. However, reflections on the flat surface are brighter as it reflects directly into the eye without being scattered. Polarized lenses protect the eyes from these reflections directly entering the eye. Polarized lenses have a special coating (coating with a special chemical simulating the oil found in the eyes of eagles that filters out certain harmful spectrums of light from the sun) that blocks some of the rays. It, however, may act as a filter to protect the eyes from its harmful consequences. Polarized lenses hence allow only vertical light. This filter is usually vertical to allow light rays to enter the eye, as the glare is horizontal. Since the horizontal light is blocked, it helps to eliminate the glare from shining directly into the eyes.
Do Polarized Lenses Provide Ultraviolet Protection?
Polarized lenses and ultraviolet (UV) protection are different concepts. Polarized lenses do not protect from ultraviolet rays unless they are specially designed and made to protect from UV rays. Similarly, UV-protection lenses do not protect against high glare. UV-protected lenses shield against harmful UV exposure and prevent eye damage, temporary blindness, or photokeratitis, as well as other long-term consequences and eye disorders like cataracts. Hence, ophthalmologists often recommend wearing sunglasses for 100 percent protection when one is outdoors. They also recommend wearing sunglasses that provide both UV protection and glare protection (polarized) to be safe since UV lenses do not prevent glare.
What Are the Disadvantages of Polarized Lenses?
While there are several benefits of using polarized lenses, there are also a few disadvantages.
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Cannot Be Used for Reading: Polarized lenses have a coating on the surface that darkens the lens. Hence, they cannot be used for activities like reading.
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Difficulty in Performing Various Activities: These lenses may not be helpful for driving, flying, or sky activities as these lenses can react negatively to certain windshield tints.
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Cannot Be Worn During the Night: Polarized lenses can be worn during the day. However, wearing them at night can prove to be dangerous. The darkened lens (due to the coating) further makes it difficult to see in low-light situations.
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Difficulty in Viewing LCD Screens: Polarized lenses are not beneficial for viewing LCD (liquid crystal display) screens as they may be difficult and may cause discomfort.
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Eye Sensitivity: People may be very sensitive to the changing colors of the lens in different environments. This could, however, be very annoying and equally frustrating for some people.
Conclusion
It is important to understand that polarized glasses or lenses may not protect from the damaging effects of staring directly at the sun. One should always protect their eyes from harmful UV rays and take the necessary precautions to protect them from long-term eye damage. Doctors often recommend wearing sunglasses that provide ultraviolet and glare protection. Some companies may provide misleading information about the type of protection they provide. Hence one must be careful and seek the right information about the sunglasses before purchasing them.
