The Importance of UV-Protection for You and Your Kids

I wear my sunglasses all the time. ALL THE TIME. If it is winter, if it is dusk, if it is pre-dawn and I’ve been out rockin’ till the early morn’. OK, who am I kidding. I am not out rockin’ except for maybe once a year. Maybe. I bet I have my sunglasses on though. I wear them shoveling snow and even in the rain I can be seen sportin’ my shades. It is something I started doing in high school right around the time I stopped wearing glasses and started wearing contacts. I cannot drive without sunglasses. I even wear them in the pool.

My kids are a whole other story. One that is fairly sad given that my genes and my spouses already have passed on some weak eyesight in at least one of our kids. According to the Vision Council short-term exposure, like a day at the pool, can leave eyes swollen, blood-shot and hyper-sensitive to light. Over time and without the use of sunglasses with UV-protection you can incur damage to your eyes like macular degeneration, abnormal growths and even cataracts. That last one runs in my family on both sides and I don’t need my kids having to deal with that if I can help it. When you think about how kids are outside about three times more than adults it seems a bit scary and daunting. Ever try to get your two year-old to wear a pair of sunglasses more than five seconds? Now that is a daunting task.

So how do you protect your kids and yourself from the sun’s harmful UV rays? A bevy of other bloggers and I hosted by The Motherhood spoke to the optometrists and Vision Council members and we learned the following things-

1. Eye color appears to be important, with studies suggesting that blue eyes are at more risk for UV damage then brown eyes. the protective pigment melanin may be the key reason since blue irises has less of it. Research has shown a higher incidence of age-related macular degeneration may be one consequence.

2. Skin complexion may reduce some people’s risk of sunburn but has no effect on eye damage. according to the World health Organization (WhO), darker sink affords no greater defense to eyes against UV harm.

3. The season and time of day affect UV intensity in virtually any area. In the United States, UV levels are highest during summer months, especially between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Your geographic location does too. Cities like Tampa, FL, Houston, TX and Los Angeles, CA rate high on the UV risk areas.

How to Help Your Kids in Five Easy Steps

1. Make sure that the glasses you buy are either transitional lenses with UV-protection for those kids wearing prescription glasses.

2. When you buy regular, non-prescription sunglasses for your child make sure they are not from a street vendor. These are not reputable or containing the UV-protection needed.

3. Have your kids decorate their own certified UV-protected sunglasses. They might wear them more often if they helped create and style them. Allowing them to pick out shades with their favorite characters is another good way.

4. Monkey see. Monkey Do. It’s as easy as wearing your own UV-protected sunglasses every time you hit the outdoors. Your kids will want to emulate you and wear theirs as well.

5. Keep them in the same spot in the house or car so you always have them handy. I keep all of our sunglasses in a wooden box by the front door.

I found this great site with guranteed UV and UVB-protected sunglasses for kids and the whole family!

For some fun tips, tools and activities for the kids visit these interactive pages-

Kids UV-activity page: KidsUVActivityPage.pdf

The Bureau of Missing Sunglasses tools: (below)

PackLists App- a free and automated suitcase-packing application for iPhones and iPads.

UV Map- a map of U.S. cities with the highest ultraviolet threat ratings.

UV Indicator Widget- a free widget with daily UV index levels by zipcode.

MORE FACTS

The Vision Council Report: Finding Your Shades, Protecting Your Vision:

Children’s Eyewear Options

Visit the Vision Council’s Facebook page!