There are so many options when it comes to frames and lenses, it can be difficult to know which is best for you and what will give your eyes the best protection. Some of the most common questions that we’ve faced over the last couple of years is; What is a UV400 lens? What is a polarized lens? Which offers better protection for my eyes?
So in this blog, we are going to try to answer this for you.
What Is UV?
UV rays stand for ultraviolet rays. These rays are the electromagnetic radiation that is emitted from the sun’s light. UV rays can be identified in two formats. UVA rays and UVB rays.
UVA rays are approximately 500 times more common than UVB, and it is UVA rays which penetrate the skin and eyes more deeply and play a greater role in skin ageing, and wrinkle formation.
UVB rays, which are considerably less present in sunlight in comparison to UVA rays, are the electromagnetic radiation type that is responsible for sunburn, and also plays the greatest role in causing skin cancers, including forming black moles.
Regardless of what type of UV ray you are exposed to, you should endeavour to protect your eyes from the impact from sunlight and its radiation as much as possible.
What Is A UV400 Lens?
UV400 indicates that the lens has been designed to block wavelengths up to 400 nanometers, which means that almost 100% of the sun’s UV rays (both UVA and UVB) will be blocked from damaging your eyes.
However, it shouldn’t be assumed that every black sunglass lens is UV400 rated, as in order for a pair of glasses to be considered UV sunglasses, lenses are only required to block a minimum of 75% of UV rays. Further, the majority of sunglasses are not UV sunglasses at all and as fashion glasses, look great, but may not offer any protection to your eyes.
What Is A Polarized Lens?
Polarized lenses use a specially unique chemical film coating to filter reflected light and reduce glare from smooth and reflective surfaces that are exposed to the sun, this reduces the damage done to eyes from reflective UV exposure.
What Is The Difference Between A Polarized Lens & A UV400 Lens?
The polarization of a lens doesn’t mean that the lens is protecting your eyes from UV rays, and equally a lens that is able to block 100% of UV rays up to 400 nanometers doesn’t mean that the lens is protecting your eyes from the effects of surface glare. However, it is widely considered that UV400 lenses are more important for protecting your eyes long term when compared to the benefits of Polarized lenses.
All Lucyd frames can be purchased with UV400 lenses for maximum eye protection, check out our UV400 Darkside spec here.
