Do you know how to buy sunglasses?

SUNGLASSES HAVE A LOT OF HISTORY

Sunglasses have been found in our lives since prehistoric times. In fact, its origin seems to go back to the Inuit peoples of the arctic regions of North America, since they wore a kind of flattened "glasses" made of walrus ivory, with which they looked through narrow slits to block the passage of the sunlight. But this great genius didn't stop there!

The first “sunglasses” date from around the 12th century in China, although they were not used precisely to protect themselves from sunlight or correct vision. Through a technology of smoked quartz lenses, Chinese judges in courts used these darkened glasses with the intention of not peeking evidence of the verdicts, and thus hide their expressions until the end of the trial. It looks awesome!

The truth is that with the passing of time, sunglasses have been developed and improved to protect us from the light of the weather until they were sold commercially since the 1930s by the hand of Sam Foster in the United States States and its brand Foster Grant. Since then they have evolved more and more throughout history to be better in function and also more and more attractive, also fulfilling an aesthetic function that promotes their purchase.

Today the awareness that sunglasses are essential for the protection of our eyes and vision has been increasing. In fact, today 80% of adults understand the importance of protecting their eyes from ultraviolet rays. Despite this, there are still many people who do not buy the correct sunglasses due to ignorance or even confusion. Do you think you can be one of them? Keep reading and find out the keys to knowing how to buy sunglasses!

First things first… what are ultraviolet rays?

The sun not only gives us light and heat during the day. Invisible rays also fall on the earth's surface and can also be found in sunlamps or tanning beds. Ultraviolet radiation, which is made up of UVA rays and UVB rays, has effects on our body and our organism that we must help combat.

Not only is it enough to protect our skin with cream sunscreens, it will also be necessary to reduce our exposure to the sun and also wear specialized glasses that absorb 99% or more of UV rays, as well as hats or caps that help to protect our eyes from diseases such as cataracts and even eye cancer.

SUNGLASSES MUST HAVE UV PROTECTION

Buying sunglasses may seem like the most trivial thing in the world to some. Suddenly you are out with your friends when a street vendor comes with many flashy options and you can't help but buy a pair of sunglasses, and even more if they are at a great price. You look in the mirror, you look phenomenal, and right at that moment you can forget that this simple article will be the one that will define if you are really protected from the ultraviolet rays emitted by the sun, or rather if they are affecting your eye quality.

Identifying the right glasses will be very simple if you know how to do it. It will suffice to see if they have a quality sticker that states the percentage of UVB and UVA rays that their lenses block. Also, if you doubt the quality of your sunglasses, you can always take them to an optical store in your area and confirm for sure with UV meters that your sunglasses do have the indicated protection.

Keep in mind that it is very easy to get confused! Many glasses that claim to be "polarized" do not guarantee UV protection. These types of glasses are designed to offer better vision in bright light but do not necessarily block the passage of ultraviolet rays to your eyes.

For their part, glasses with “mirror effect” lenses will help you reduce the amount of visible light entering your eyes, but in themselves they are not a guarantee of protection against UV rays. This mirrored finish only adds a layer to reduce light, so it will be important to differentiate this quality, and not trust yourself to buy any sunglasses just because at first glance it seems that they will protect us from ultraviolet rays that are extremely harmful.

BE CAREFUL WITH THE COLOR OF THE LENS OF YOUR GLASSES!

Many people also feel more protected if the tint or lens color in their sunglasses is more or less dark just because they reduce glare. This is one of the most common mistakes a person who trusts lens tint can make when the reality is that even glasses with completely clear lenses can offer 100% UV protection.

The truth is that each lens color in your glasses will help you improve your visual perception in the different activities you do during the day, but you should always make sure that they also have 99% or 100% protection against UVB rays and GRAPE.

Would you know how to identify which lens color is the most ideal for you?

Learn a little more about the lens colors of your glasses by understanding how they differ from each other.

GRAY LENSES: They allow true color perception but keep in mind that they will not help you improve contrast.
AMBER LENSES: This lens tone is excellent for ensuring color contrast, although we perceive them to be more yellowish and orange. They are ideal for use on cloudy days and help minimize eye strain.
RED LENSES: Glasses with red lenses aid depth perception in low light, and help the eye contrast objects against green or blue backgrounds.
GREEN GLASSES: They will help reduce eye fatigue in bright light and allow you to have true color perception with high contrast.
BROWN LENSES: They will be ideal on hazy sunny days and for high-gloss sports such as snow sports, sailing or fishing.
YELLOW GLASSES: They will be good to accompany you during cloudy days as they improve visual contrast and depth perception in low light.

REMEMBER!!

Sunglasses will not be able to protect our eyes from certain very intense light sources, so they must be worn with a certain degree of responsibility. Light emitted from welding, tanning beds and lamps or looking directly at the sun especially at peak hours or during solar eclipses can cause serious damage to your eyeballs.