HEALTH & MEDICINE :: AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2007
Protect Your Child’s Eyes with “Magical” Lenses
Children that wear glasses nowadays have many new options. Kids have a lot more choice in the style, color, and shape of the glasses they can wear. And so they should be the ones to select their frames while understanding the importance of great vision correction.
Children also need sunglasses to protect their young eyes from UV rays. Several studies indicate that the lens and retina have greater exposure to UV rays before age 18. Parents have learned to protect their child’s skin from the sun, but they seldom make an effort to protect their child’s eyes from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays and glare. The clear crystalline lens of a child’s eye transmits more than 6 times the amount of ultraviolet radiation than the crystalline lens of an adult’s eye.
Parents have enough trouble getting their youngsters to wear their reading or distance glasses, so trying to convince them to wear sunglasses may seem laughable. However, there is a lens that can serve both functions.
Transitions® lenses, also known as photochromatic lenses, are the most convenient way to provide automatic, everyday protection for children who wear prescription eyeglasses. Indoors they are clear and outdoors they turn dark brown and block glare and UV light. They not only minimize eyestrain and fatigue, but also protect the future health of the eye from cataracts and macular degeneration.
Transitions® lenses are available in sturdy, lightweight, shatter and impact-resistant materials in the industry’s widest selection of lens designs and brand names. As an added plus, many children may find it’s “cool” to wear clear glasses that “magically” darken in the sun. So children can have the sun protection their eyes need, while enjoying the benefits of seeing well.
Transitions® lenses can help keep children wearing their glasses, while promoting good eye health for them now and into the future.
Dr. Milner is a part of the multi-specialty twelve-physician team at Delaware Ophthalmology Consultants. For more information about this article or to schedule an appointment, call 302-479-EYES (3937) or visit us at www.delawareeyes.com. Delaware Ophthalmology Consultants has two convenient offices in Wilmington, and a third opening this September in Middletown. Each location offers full-service optical centers featuring affordable, fashionable frame designs and the latest in lens technology.
