If you’re over forty, you’ve probably noticed a change in your eyesight. It is common at this age to begin to experience difficulty seeing up close. Reading on the computer can be more exhausting than before. The fine print anywhere becomes a challenge. When reading books, you may find yourself holding them closer, then further away, trying to find the right distance to make the text readable.
Finally, you get some loupes, perhaps the non-prescription kind at first. Eventually, you will probably visit your ophthalmologist and get real glasses, which is what I did. I am nearsighted (have trouble seeing things that are not right in front of me) and have been for years. Once I reached forty, I also became farsighted. Yes, without glasses, I have the unenviable condition of not being able to see far. gold near. And yes, it’s as nasty as it sounds.
My eye doctor added bifocals to my prescription. Instead of the old style with the line down the middle of the lens that announces how old you are to the world, these days we are privileged to wear “progressive lenses,” which are great, because there is no line that tells your age. .
I can’t see anything without my glasses, unless I wear contacts, so my doctor recommended that in addition to the progressive lenses, I add “transitions”, which will darken in the open air, turning them into sunglasses.
They’re convenient, obviously, because you don’t need an extra pair of prescription sunglasses.
I used them for over a year, almost every day. I live in a warm and sunny climate and I take walks for exercise several days a week. I am diligent about skin protection and never go out in the sun without sunscreen. I also usually wear a wide-brimmed hat.
A year after wearing these bifocal sunglasses, I noticed that the skin on my upper cheeks, where the sun hits the bifocals, was drier than the skin on the rest of my face. It was also developing sun spots, enlarged pores, and was starting to sag a bit.
At first, I chalked this up to nothing more than the fact that am get old The elasticity of the skin naturally decreases over time.
But then it occurred to me that this the change in my skin was only evident in two spots on the top of my cheeks. Hmm.
I asked myself what has been different in the last few months?
Of course, it was the bifocal sunglasses. Before using them, I wore my regular prescription sunglasses, the ones that were just for nearsightedness. the have-nots magnifying glass in them.
Think about what a magnifying glass does to sunlight. Remember that experiment in school where you let the sun shine through a magnifying glass and it BURNED out what was behind it?
Exactly.
Bifocals worn under the sun do the same.
You are repeatedly exposing your face to a magnifying glass in the sun. Although the glass does darken with progressives, reducing UV rays, the penetration of light is even more intense through magnification. And it goes straight to your skin.
I no longer wear bifocals in the sun. I wear an old pair of prescription sunglasses without bifocals and they are fine for walking outside or driving since I don’t have to read up close.
If you have been wearing your progressive bifocals in the sun for a while and notice that your skin looks a little drier, darker, redder or more wrinkled than on your cheeks, please take some precautions, because willpower get worse over time. If you don’t catch it early, the damage will eventually become permanent.
If you love your glasses and want to keep wearing them in the sun, make sure you:
1. Add additional high SPF sunscreen to your cheeks. (30 or more)
2. Wear a wide-brimmed hat.
3. If possible, avoid being outdoors between 11 am and 2 pm when the sun is strongest.
Our eyesight inevitably changes as we age and so does our skin, but I hope this information helps you keep your skin looking its best for as long as possible.