Who ride with sunglasses, and where?

[vannibombonato]

tried polarized sunglasses a couple years ago, never went back.

Couldn’t imagine to ride without now, it’s probably the single most important accessory.

I even put some hydrophobic coating on them, not a single drop stays on the lense.

[MaximumAC]

Optometrist here. Sunglasses all the time for sure. No need to repeat what's already been said, but I see watermen everyday who have never worn sunglasses and it absolutely takes its toll. Some damage easily fixed (cataract...), some not (macular degeneration and pinguecula/pterygium).

[Matteo V]

Optometrist here. Sunglasses all the time for sure.

So what is your take on the 415-450 nm range that may or may not be covered by Polycarbonate lenses without a specific coating to stop that light. What kind of damage does that cause vs the shorter invisible(?) UV. Can you provide some linked references? My search came up with nothing so far.

https://www.paulaschoice.com/expert-adv ... -rays.html

All I found is that:

UVA = 320nm - 400nm
UVB = 290nm - 320nm

What would that longer (415-450 nm range) light be classified as?

[Matteo V]

Ok, found 2 good articles on blue light that do not seem to be trying too hard to sell you something. You should definitely read these.

http://www.pointsdevue.com/article/eye- ... olet-light

And the best so far:

https://www.allaboutvision.com/cvs/blue-light.htm

My take from these articles and the ones that were definitely trying to sell you something is that the issue may have to do with increasing lifespan. Since humans have in the past 200 years (roughly in the western world) increased our average lifespan from 40 to 80, some of our body parts never evolved durability beyond that time frame. Thus blue light may be somewhat of a concern when considering an 80 year lifespan.

However, it does not look like this is an epidemic. Nor does there seem to be a solution. But there are some things you could buy to make you feel better, and may possibly do something positive with negligible or unknown negatives.

Overall, it seems that this is the next "sitting is the new smoking" fad, with just as much based in reality.

[MaximumAC]

You're referring to the blue spectrum of visible light, which has been a hot topic for the last 4 years or so as it has been implicated in disrupting sleep and macular degeneration. The theory is that backlit displays produce lots of blue light, so being on your phone at bedtime will disrupt your melatonin production. Also, blue light may cause excess oxidative stress on the macula. That all being said, the sun is by far the greatest source of blue light. If you are wearing sunglasses, they are by definition, filtering the visible spectrum. How much blue light is being filtered is a function of the tint (classic blue blockers are yellow...think hardcore gamers glasses). Companies have also come out with a wide range of blue blocking lenses that do not show a tint now as well (prevencia to name one).

Long story short, wear some dark, wrapped, polarized sunglasses and you'll be fine.

https://www.allaboutvision.com/cvs/blue-light.htm
https://www.allaboutvision.com/sunglasses/spf.htm

[MaximumAC]

I don't think it's fair to call it a "fad." But more research is needed before drawing such a direct link as saying "excess computer use (blue light) causes macular degeneration." As with all things it is multi-factorial and comes down to relative risk.

You are correct in your statement about living longer than ever before, but also we are using our eyes as never before as well.

[jakemoore]

Optometrist here.

If you happen to like wind, we are recruiting in Corpus Christi.

OP: pterygium is more common in equatorial latitudes. Spheroidal degeneration is more common above 45 degrees north or south. Sunglasses are a good idea for all.

[PullStrings]

To block the most bad blue-violet light without being polarized the best lenses are polycarbonate Transitions Xtractive Brown with backside anti-reflective...it will knock out 35% in inactivated state and 90% fully dark

[MaximumAC]

To block the most bad blue-violet light without being polarized the best lenses are polycarbonate Transitions Xtractive Brown with backside anti-reflective...it will knock out 35% in inactivated state and 90% fully dark

Sounds like I might not be the only person in eyecare here....

[JakeFarley]

Very interesting reading. I would suppose that the snow kiters are aware that 80% of the UV radiation is reflected by snow.