Keep your eyes healthy by scheduling regular eye exams with Northern Lights Eye Care and following their eye protection advice. The team at this Anchorage, AK, eye care facility has been offering state-of-the-art treatment for the whole family for the last 14 years. Eye protection is key whether engaging in sporting events or defending them from the sun. To keep your eyes healthy and free of damage, review what these professional eye doctors want you to know about protecting your vision.

Protect your eyes from sunlight, glare, and sporting equipment with these tips:

• Sunlight: Use eyewear that features 100% protection against UVA and UVB rays whenever you are outdoors. This is important no matter the time of year, as UV light burns eye surfaces and causes benign yellowish growths to form. Prolonged exposure to UV rays contributes to severe eye diseases and conditions, including macular degeneration and cataracts. Both of these eye health issues cause blindness in people over 60.

• Sports: Shield your eyes from tennis balls, baseballs, and other sporting equipment with polycarbonate eyewear. Polycarbonate is shatter- and impact-resistant and provides serious eye protection when combined with durable frames. Over half of traumatic eye injuries are due to ball sports, and 90% of these injuries are preventable. Some 45% of such injuries happen to children 14 and younger, so ensure your kids have the right safety equipment.

• Glare: Request eyewear with anti-reflective (AR) treatment to protect eyes from damaging glare. Glare occurs when a light is reflected off of a surface, such as a car, sidewalk, or road sign. Sunlight causes glare, as do oncoming vehicle headlights. Glare can subsequently occur both day and night and cause problems such as eye fatigue, squinting, and temporary blindness.

Discuss other ways to keep your eyes protected with the eye doctors at Northern Lights Eye Care. Schedule an eye exam to check your prescription and ensure your eyes are not damaged. Call (907) 276-3937 today to make an appointment in Anchorage or like these eye doctors on Facebook for updates. Visit the website for more information on optimal eye health.