Protective Sports Eyewear
As a nation, Britain has been inspired to take up sport, following our fantastic medal haul at this year's Olympics, and no doubt the sale of all sports related clothing and equipment should go some way to spending our way out of the debt crisis. It is fantastic to take part in a sport, there are benefits galore, not just from increased healthiness but making new friends and enjoying competing against someone else, and achieving your potential.
It does pay to just take a pause and consider other very important pieces of equipment that can get overlooked in any sport, your eyes. Most of us will buy the safety helmet along with the racing bike, or the goggles along with latest speedo, and consider that protection enough, and happily wear our titanium glasses or regular contact lenses, and for some sports that's fine. However, if you are seriously into your sport it might be wise to visit your optician and discuss what options there are to protect your eyes more effectively.
The choice of the right eyewear can enhance your vision and improve your sporting performance, even if you have perfect eye sight. For example, in outdoor sports, like biking or running, wraparound glasses will protect your eyes and contact lenses from wind, grit and dirt, and filter out harsh sunlight These can either be frames with interchangeable lenses, allowing you to customize glasses; transition lenses, which change colour with the light levels or bespoke wrap around frames. Similarly, if you are playing a lot of indoor sports, under fluorescent lighting, such as table tennis, badminton or other racket sports, and which require speed and agility, a prescription pair of wrap glasses would also be an asset.
Regular eyeglasses and sunglasses don't protect the eyes very well, light framed glasses have a tendency to fly off, and almost all glasses are not strong enough to withstand crash landing on hard surfaces or being hit by flying objects – be that ball or bat, or elbows. Also, if your glasses take a hit, its hard to function until you get to your spare pair. It makes sense to have a dedicated set of prescription sports glasses, with impact and scratch resistant lenses, suited to your eyesight. Contact lenses and chlorinated swimming pools are not a happy mix, even with swimming goggles on – high chlorine content can cause eye irritations or in some rare cases, cornea damage. You can get prescription goggles ready to wear or, especially if you swim competitively, bespoke.
This is equally important for your children – children are less risk averse in sports and prone to more injury out of sheer enthusiasm and exuberance. If you son or daughter loves sport, then make sure that they also have the correct sports eyewear. And you shouldn't hear much complaint from them that they look 'weird' as most sports sunglasses or spectacles are distinctly on trend, and it shows that they mean business!
And just on facts and figures, consider this:- According to the Eyecare Trust, sport is now the biggest cause of hospital admission for serious eye injury in the UK. The Royal Society for the Prevention or Accidents estimates that “squash balls alone are responsible for 2,000 hospital admissions in the UK year year, while squash rackets account for about 2,400”.
BBR Opticians on Leg Street Oswestry are not only highly qualified to care for your eyesight, they include some pretty keen sportsfolk, who will be more than happy to advise on what's best for you in your sport, and show you the latest in sports eyewear.
