Holiday Outing "Sunglasses Needed Even on Cloudy Days... Check UV400 Certification"

Taking Care of Elderly Eye Health... "Lens Color Is Unrelated to UV Protection"

On the 1st, during the ongoing Chuseok holiday, citizens and foreigners visiting Gyeongbokgung Palace in Jongno-gu, Seoul, are enjoying their time./Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jeong] As the number of visitors during the Chuseok holiday increases, interest in eye health is also rising. Exposure to ultraviolet rays not only during the hot summer days but also in the strong sunlight of autumn can accelerate eye aging and cause various diseases.

Ophthalmic diseases that can be caused by ultraviolet rays include cataracts, macular degeneration, conjunctival folds, and pterygium (a condition where fibrovascular tissue grows over the cornea in a wing-like shape). Ultraviolet rays induce inflammatory responses, photooxidation reactions, and photochemical reactions, causing damage to the conjunctiva, lens, and retinal tissues, and promoting the production of metabolic waste. These reactions are more pronounced in elderly patients because the melanin in the pigment epithelium and choroid, which protects the eye tissues from ultraviolet rays, gradually weakens with age.

Caution is needed when choosing sunglasses. Generally, people think that darker lenses block ultraviolet rays better, but UV protection depends more on the ultraviolet blocking coating than on the color of the lenses.

Ultraviolet rays are classified by wavelength into UV-C (100-280 nm), UV-B (280-315 nm), and UV-A (315-400 nm). Among these, most UV-C rays are absorbed by the ozone layer and do not reach the earth’s surface, but some UV-B and UV-A rays do reach the surface, so protection against them is necessary. Professor Hwang, an ophthalmologist at Sanggye Paik Hospital, Inje University, said, “The packaging containing the lenses usually indicates whether it is certified, so you should carefully check before purchasing. Especially, those certified as UV400 block more than 99% of ultraviolet rays with wavelengths below 400 nm, which means they can block most UV-A and UV-B rays that reach the surface.”

In particular, ultraviolet-blocking sunglasses should be worn whenever going outside regardless of the weather. It is easy to think that there are no ultraviolet rays on cloudy days, but even on cloudy days, the ultraviolet transmittance can reach 80%. Just as skin sunscreen is applied throughout the four seasons, eyes also need ultraviolet protection all year round.

The shape of the glasses should be chosen so that the lenses and frames sufficiently cover the eyes and the surrounding area. The color of the lenses is unrelated to the degree of ultraviolet protection, so you can choose your preferred color. Proper care of the lenses is also important. If foreign substances are on the lenses or if they are scratched, the ultraviolet blocking effect decreases. Professor Hwang advised, “If foreign substances are on the lenses or if they are scratched, the ultraviolet blocking effect decreases, so it is necessary to develop a habit of cleaning and maintaining them regularly.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.