Cutting through the glare of winter driving
Driving in bright snowy conditions, prolonged exposure to UV rays can harm your eyes
The human retina is a half-millimetre thick layer of delicate tissue that lines the inner rear part of our eyeball. A complex array of specialized cells and structures are built in, allowing us to see.
About 150 million kilometres away from us is the sun: the engine for all life on Earth and the source of a dangerous type of energy that science has taught us humans to protect ourselves from — ultraviolet (UV) radiation or light. Over time, UV light can damage your outdoor furniture, the paint on your car, the surface of your skin and your retinas.
“Ultraviolet light has been proven to be damaging to your eyes,” said Dr. Jessica Cullis, an optometrist at West 10th Eyes, in Vancouver, B.C. “It can cause or exacerbate certain eye conditions: age-related macular degeneration being the most commonly known condition.
“Prolonged exposure to UV light, even at a young age, will cause cataracts to develop more quickly. In addition, it can cause tissue changes on the white of the eye known as pinguecula and pterygium, which can expand to the cornea causing vision deterioration.”
Winter driving poses an added danger when it comes to UV rays; thanks to the snow, ice, and water common on roadways during the season. These surfaces are highly reflective and can threaten the health and comfort of our eyes.
“We associate protecting eyes from UV with wearing sunglasses in the summer. However, in the winter, there are still significant UV rays,” said Cullis. “In addition to UV, which can physically damage the eye, bright sunlight causes glare, which can make vision uncomfortable. Snow and ice reflections amplify this glare. While driving, especially in bright snowy or icy conditions, glare off horizontal surfaces can be debilitating.”
Driving in these conditions can make your eyes squint, making it harder and less comfortable for drivers to look around and gather information on what is going on around their vehicle. It can also accelerate the onset of eye fatigue if you’re driving for long periods of time. For some drivers, this type of eye strain can result in headaches, too.
“These symptoms can remain even after they have stopped driving, therefore making other visual tasks (texting, using the computer or reading) more challenging,” said Cullis. “When you relax your eyes during one visual experience, it allows them to be more relaxed and better able to perform other visual tasks later on.”
There is a simple way to protect your eyes and help them relax — wear a quality pair of driving glasses or sunglasses.
“Even on bright, cloudy days, there is a lot of UV light in the sky that can damage the eyes,” Cullis said. “High-quality sunglasses should have 100 per cent UVA and UVB protection. This will decrease the negative impacts of exposure to sunlight. There are significant differences between the quality of sunglasses that have equal UV protective abilities — a high-quality sunglass lens has less distortion and therefore improves image quality.”
If it’s in your budget, consider a polarized lens. This feature blocks the incoming light reflected off most glare-causing surfaces and darkens brighter objects you are looking at.
“Many people appreciate the impact that polarized lenses make while driving,” said Cullis. “Additional lens treatments are also helpful. Anti-reflective coatings help to reduce glare, make the lens clearer to look through, and reduce reflections off the windshield, off other car headlights and off other surfaces.”
The right set of sunglasses can immediately help you feel more at ease behind the wheel and make it easier to see important details further away — all with no squinting.