Athletes and Eyewear: How to Choose the Best Lens Tint for You
Posted by EyePromise on Aug 6th 2014
Every serious athlete knows wearing lenses or protective eyewear to shield their eyes from the bright sun is a good idea. But not all sports are played in the same amount of sunlight. This means that, according to your sport and exposure to the sun, you will need specific eyewear. Every detail matters: even the lens color.
For example, the tint of the sunglasses a volleyball player would wear in the glaring sun would be too dark for a golfer playing in overcast weather. As an athlete you might wonder how to choose the best lens tint for you. Here are four tips to best protect your eyes in any outdoor environment:
Yellow or Orange Tints
For overcast and hazy days, it’s important to remember that you still need to protect your eyes. Many athletes will think an overcast day warrants playing sunglass free, which leaves you unprotected from any sun that may peek behind dark clouds or any blue light in the surrounding environment. According to allaboutvision.com, when it comes to athletes and eyewear, sports that benefit from yellow or orange tinted glasses include cycling, hunting, shooting, skiing, snowboarding, snowmobiling, indoor basketball, handball, racquetball, and tennis.
Amber, Rose, and Red Tints
These color tints help to heighten contrast in partly cloudy and sunny environments. These tints help an athlete clearly distinguish the ball against a gray or even sunny sky. These color-tinted glasses are well suited for cycling, fishing (amber lenses for sandy lake or stream beds), hunting, shooting, skiing, snowboarding, snowmobiling, and water sports.
Dark Amber, Copper, and Brown Tints
For visual acuity and protection from blue light, these tint colors are best. Blue light comes from everyday appliances you would never guess could potentially harm your eyes. These include cell phones, computer screens, and even florescent lighting in hallways. It’s important to protect your vision from these daily exposures to blue light. These tint colors also help improve contrast on grass and against a blue sky. Sports like baseball, cycling, fishing (especially in waters with grassy bottoms), golf, hunting, skiing, and water sports pair nicely with these color tints.
Gray Tints
This tint color helps protect your eyes from any outdoor sun exposure. It reduces overall brightness while retaining color recognition. You’ll find that beach volleyball players especially prefer this color tint due to the glare of the sun and it's light reflecting off of the sand.
Often, athletes may prefer one color for all of their sporting needs, or choose multiples for different weather situations. The best way to maximize your game is to be fitted by an optician for a pair of prescribed sports eyewear. Protection is of the utmost concern when it comes to choosing sports eyewear, so choose a reliable pair and get your game on!
Internal Sunglasses
Having the correct tinted sunglasses is important, but protecting your vision from the inside is even more serious. By taking supplements, you’re taking the next step into protecting and maintaining your vision. By having a thicker and denser macular pigment, it’s like having internal sunglasses that protect your vision from the “inside.” To protect your eyes internally, check out Vizual Edge Chewable.