Impossible to choose your sunglasses only for their more or less glamorous side. Even if you wear a cap or a hat. Because these accessories do not completely block UV rays, especially if you are at the beach where they are reflected by the sea and even more by the sand. However, just as with the skin, excessive exposure can cause the equivalent of a sunburn on the cornea at the front of the eye. Tears, redness, pain and difficulty opening the eyes are the main symptoms that can occur several hours later.
Professor Eric Gabison, ophthalmologist surgeon at the Rothschild Foundation in Paris, explains that one should not hesitate to consult because treatment is necessary in the event of major inflammation. And above all, it specifies the more insidious long-term risks, with cancers of the surface of the eye due to cellular damage caused by UV rays, and early aging which accelerates the onset of two diseases. The lens, just behind the cornea, will opacify more quickly: this is the famous cataract. And deep in the eye, the retina can develop “in advance” AMD, early age-related macular degeneration. However, AMD remains impossible to cure. As for cataracts, an operation before the age of 60 is at greater risk of complications.
The first criterion for finding sunglasses is the famous CE marking which guarantees compliance with safety standards. Next to it you must find a number that goes from 0 to 4: this is the level of UV filtration. To have sufficient protection in full sun, you have to start at 3. It can be translated by a drawing of the sun with, be careful, 16 rays. Be careful, really, because with only 8 spokes, it’s a level 2. And if you’re testing the open sea for a day, level 4 is even better, but beware, too dark to drive.
Without forgetting of course to protect the eyes of children who are naturally more fragile. Great fragility also the year following a myopia operation: Professor Gabison then suggests level 4 glasses.