Simon Wade
A FREE Ultraviolet checking service is being provided by Specsavers, coinciding with next Sunday’s National Sunglasses Day.
June 27th is being marked as an awareness day to celebrate and share the importance of wearing UV protective sunglasses to protect our vision.
In support of the cause, Specsavers Ópticas are offering the free UV checking service in-store to allow people to check the protection qualities of their sunglasses.
Francisco Jurado, Director of Specsavers Ópticas in Torrevieja explains, “UV rays can damage our vision as well as our skin.”
“Prolonged UV exposure has been linked to cataracts, macular degeneration, and even some types of eye cancer,” he continued.
“Sunglasses are not just fashion accessories, so it’s particularly important that you wear a good pair that offer high levels of UV protection.”
There is a general concern that not all sunglasses provide sufficient protection from damaging UV rays, so sunglasses need to conform with certain safety standards.
Look out for CE (European Community Standard), BSEN1836 (British Standard) or UV400 markings and aim for a pair that offer 80 percent light reduction.
Wearing sunglasses that do not meet the European industry standard protection of UV380 rating, especially those with dark lenses, is considered more damaging to the eyes than not wearing any at all.
This is because dark lenses dilate the pupil and let in more harmful rays than if you weren’t wearing them, because without the glasses the eyes would naturally squint to keep the rays out.
Hence the reason why the popular British optician chain is offering UV protection checks in store, to make sure eyes are properly protected from the sun this summer.
The seven mainland Specsavers Ópticas stores offering the UV check service are in Javea, Calpe, Benidorm, Guardamar, Torrevieja and Marbella, along with Santa Ponça in Mallorca.
Visit www.specsavers.es to find the nearest store.
