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Where are my
sunglasses? Has anybody seen my
sunglasses? I yelled repeatedly as my
family and I walked outside to load the
car for our July 4th trip .
I was born and raised in Florida and have
bought at least 200 sunglasses.
Unfortunately, I have broken, lost or
misplaced 199 of them, and I was down to
my last pair.
I try to practice what I preach. I tell
everyone to wear sunglasses with
ultraviolet protection. Our research has
proven that there is a direct link between
the "sunburn rays" and developing
cataracts and macular degeneration that
can cause blindness. The harmful
ultraviolet/sunburn rays can be blocked
with sunglasses. I tell my patients and
family that wearing sunglasses is like
wearing sunscreen for your eyes.
You may be surprised to realize that the
FDA does not regulate sunglasses. People
incorrectly think that any dark glasses
are protecting their eyes, but there is
absolutely no correlation between the
darkness of sunglasses and their
protection from UV sunburn rays. In fact,
wearing sunglasses WITHOUT UV protection
is doing more harm and more damage than
going without sunglasses. The dark lenses
without UV protection fool the eyes; the
pupils dilate, letting in more UV sunburn
rays, and the damage accumulates.
Here are recommendations for choosing the
best sunglasses:
1. Get the UV
sunglasses that block 100 percent of UVB
(B is bad) and also block UVA.
2. Do not buy sunglasses that do not have
UV protection ratings posted on them.
3. The high price or dark color is not an
indication of protection.
Of course, pick sunglasses that make you
look great. Remember, your eyes deserve
the best; they are the only eyes you will
ever have.
By the way, I found my sunglasses. My wife
Sue was wearing them. It seems that she
had lost her 200th pair of sunglasses
before I did and she took mine. |
