How To Care For Your Eyeglasses In Winter

by Admin
December 26, 2022

Caring for your eyeglasses all year will help them to last longer and avoid scratched lenses, off-centred frames, or broken arms. Proper eyeglass care involves cleaning your lenses regularly and not using materials that could scratch them like paper towels, making sure you don’t put pressure on the frames, and avoiding extreme hot or cold temperatures. While proper eyeglass care is always important, it is even more important in the winter. During the winter months, eyeglasses are more susceptible to breaking and prone to fogged lenses. Here are some ways your optometrist wants you to protect your eyeglasses this winter.

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Keep Your Eyeglasses Safe This Winter

Be Careful In The Extreme Cold
As materials such as glass, metal, and plastic (all the typical components of eyeglasses) get cold, they become brittle. The colder they get, the more delicate your eyeglasses become. If you’re wearing your eyeglasses out in the cold, handle them with care so as to not damage the brittle, delicate pieces of your eyeglasses. Keep your eyeglasses out of the cold by ensuring you don’t leave them in the car, especially overnight.

Avoid Fog
Even mildly cold temperatures can cause your eyeglasses to fog up when you step into a warm room. To help prevent this, speak with an optician about anti-fog wipes, sprays, or eyeglass coatings that may be available. Avoid fogged eyeglasses by wearing scarves and other outdoor face covering tight to your nose, or try to get a somewhat breathable material so that the condensation of your warm breath doesn’t drift upward and fog your eyeglasses. If you want to avoid fogging lenses altogether, consider switching to contact lenses.

Don’t Wear Eyeglasses For Winter Sports
Although it’s always important to see what you’re doing, it’s best to not wear eyeglasses while you’re hitting the slopes or taking a ride on your snowmobile. Because eyeglasses are more delicate in the cold, wearing them for outdoor winter activities like these can easily result in broken frames or lenses, which can cause eye injuries. Instead, wear contact lenses and regular protective goggles or, if you’re an avid outdoor person, consider purchasing a pair of prescription ski goggles. These are a much safer option for outdoor sports and they will cover more of your face from the cold air than regular eyeglasses.

Store Eyeglasses In Their Case
If you take your eyeglasses off to keep them out of the cold while you’re out doing winter sports, or even while they defog, store them in a hard protective case. Whether your eyeglasses are in a hard case or not, don’t keep them on seats, a bed, or anywhere else they may be accidentally crushed, especially if they are cold. If you take your eyeglasses off while you’re outside, do not put them into your pocket or purse without a hard case, as this may scratch the lenses.

Eyeglasses Care In Calgary

Try as you might, sometimes accidents happen and eyeglasses can break or lenses can become scratched. If eyeglasses damage is minor, an optician may be able to repair them, especially if the damage is a broken nose piece or an arm that is no longer connected but still has the screw. If your eyeglasses are beyond repair or if it’s time for an upgrade, Sunridge Eye Clinic can help you find the perfect pair. Our optometrists can administer an eye exam to determine an updated prescription and our opticians can help you find a pair of frames that compliment your face and accentuate your personal style. For help finding new eyeglass frames, contact Sunridge Eye Clinic at 1-403-280-7518, fill out the online contact form, or visit us in NE Calgary.

FAQ

Q: How often should I get new eyeglasses?
A: Any time your prescription changes, you will need new eyeglasses to accommodate this. In general, it is recommended that adults get new eyeglasses every 2 or 3 years. This ensures that the prescription is up to date and that you aren’t struggling to see through scratched lenses.

Q: My current eyeglasses are very thick and heavy. Can anything be done about this?
A: Many lenses can be thinned, but there are limits to this. You will need to ask your optician about how thin your lenses can be and if the thickness of the lens will impact what type of frame you can use. You can also ask about lightweight frames and eyeglasses fit to help stop eyeglasses from slipping down your nose.

Q: My eyes hurt from how bright the snow is but I don’t like to take my eyeglasses off to wear sunglasses.
A: Sunlight (and its UV rays) is reflected off of the snow and can be very bright. To keep your eyes comfortable, you can opt for transition lenses that change to a dark tone when exposed to UV rays, prescription sunglasses, or an anti-glare lens coating. Keep in mind that transition lenses do not turn dark while you drive.