A lot of people think of sunglasses as a fashion statement or something extra to wear during summer. However, eye specialists recommend that you make sure to wear sunglasses all year around and especially, when spending time in the mountains.
Sunglasses are a must-have, especially, for those who love backpacking adventures. Keep in mind that even if it’s not very sunny, at elevation, the UV radiation is stronger and can still harm your eyes and the skin around your eyes.
The danger with hiking frequently without sunglasses is that you can contract pterygium and cataracts. These are some of the conditions that can permanently affect your vision.
Apart from wearing quality sunglasses, we also recommend that you use sunscreen with strong SPF and wear a hat to protect your face.
Why Sunglasses are Recommended During Backpacking Adventures
Are you an enthusiast for backpacking adventures? If you are, good for you because it’s a good and healthy distraction. There are people who see hiking, for instance, as a challenge. The idea of completing the hike is the satisfaction that these people seek.
Apart from that, hiking is for all ages and can last several hours. The issue is that these hours are spent under the sun and as such, you need to protect yourself from the harmful UV rays.
Keep reading as we tell you why sunglasses are recommended during such adventures.
- Protection from the Sun’s Ultraviolet Rays
As you may already know, the sun emits harmful UV rays that can cause serious eyesight problems.
Some of the wavelengths of UV rays such as black light are visible. But the harmful UV rays that are emitted by the sun and which we should be worried about are invisible. As such, we can say that ultraviolet rays are sort of silent, stealthy light rays that can damage your eyesight.
There are three spectrums to UV rays:
- The lower spectrum which consists of the most well-known of UV rays referred to as UVA rays.
- The middle spectrum which has the very powerful and harmful UVB rays.
- The upper spectrum which has UVC rays that are considered the most powerful of the sun’s rays.
Brands such as Oakley, RayBan, and more offer prescription sunglasses that will protect your eyes from all those harmful UV rays.
The most important reason why you need Oakley prescription sunglasses is that they will protect you from the three spectrums of UV rays. Thus, other considerations like how your cool prescription sunglasses look or their color should be secondary. The unfortunate news is that very few sunglasses in the market today can protect you from UVC and blue light.
Generally, all sunglasses provide protection against UVA rays. But better quality Oakley sports prescription sunglasses will protect you from UVB rays. As for the most damaging UVC rays and blue light, you’ll need to buy the higher-end sunglasses with a price to match.
So if you plan to hike the mountains, forget the idea of making a fashion statement. You should instead limit your search to sunglasses that can protect your eyes from all the three spectrums of UV rays.
- They Cut Through the Glare
Sunglasses also have the ability to cut through the glare. The kind that cut through the glare are referred to as polarized sunglasses.
Polarized sunglasses are important for water sports because the glare from the water can harm your eyes. These sunglasses are also important for hiking, especially in bright colored sand landscapes.
If you’ll be hiking across snowfields or colored sand, consider getting polarized sunglasses for eye protection. Remember that the bright landscapes produce significant glare.
- Protection of the Skin Around the Eyes
Sunglasses help to protect the delicate skin around your eyes from sunburn. The skin around the eyes is thinner compared to the skin on other parts of the body.
Note that some of the people who squint receive inadequate sleep. Others squint because they leave their vision issues unaddressed for a long time and as such, they develop dark circles and wrinkles.
By wearing prescription sunglasses, you protect the skin around your eyes from showing signs of premature aging.
Whether you’re far or near, it would be ideal that you protect your eyes by wearing sports prescription glasses from Oakley. That’s considering the fact that prescription lenses minimize signs of aging.
The aging signs are brought about by involuntary muscle movements required for focusing. The addition of UV protection, however, can compound your overall protection from aging.
- Anti-scratch Lenses
It’s important that those who love backpacking adventures get sunglasses with lenses that can resist scratching. Remember that with such adventures, your sunglasses will most likely rub against trees and branches. Sand or small rocks can also get blown against the lenses and you never know, you might drop the sunglasses on rocks at some point.
With such possibilities, sunglasses that lack scratch resistant lenses can easily become unpleasant to use. No one wants to hike in Glacier National Park with their view obscured by deep gouges and scratches in their lenses.
In short, anyone involved in backpacking adventures must spend some extra money on buying prescription sunglasses that have the most scratch-resistant lenses available.
- Durability
Any sunglasses being used during backpacking adventures must be durable. It defeats the purpose of wearing glasses if they break easily due to droppage or because they are made from cheap materials.
If you love hiking, it’s important that your sunglasses have some bend to them. That’s because there are chances that you’ll sit on them at some point. You might also fall on them or drop them in such a way that they’ll bend.
Avoid going for wire-frame sunglasses because unlike plastic frames, once bent, they are almost impossible to re-bend into alignment. Consider buying well-made plastic lenses that only bend when under stress and bounce back into shape when the stress is released.
Conclusion
It might not be the first thing on your packing list but a good pair of prescription sunglasses will give you extra comfort and protection.
Oakley prescription sunglasses, for instance, offer an unparalleled clarity. So go on and order those sunglasses if you haven’t done it already. You don’t want to end up with eye complications that will hinder your adventures.
