Tag: Safety Glasses

It’s Spring!

Karen Griffith

[heading centered=”yes” margin_bottom=”no”]Stop Itching Your Eyes[/heading]
Plant pollen, house dust and animal dander can trigger ocular allergies. This causes tearing, itching and eye swelling. Cold compresses and sterile saline eye rinses are soothing. For more severe and persistent symptoms, a prescription eye drop can provide the relief you need. These drops can both relieve the itch and discomfort and prevent them from continuing.
[heading centered=”yes” margin_bottom=”no”]Don’t Let Gardening Bug your Eyes[/heading]
Don’t forget to protect your eyes when gardening. Put on those safety goggles before mowing the the lawn, trimming the bushes or using garden chemicals. Scratches and objects in the eye caused by flying debris are very painful, but can be prevented. Chemical burns and other eye irritations caused by fertilizers and weed killers can be avoided too.
[heading centered=”yes” margin_bottom=”no”]Play Ball![/heading]
Protective sports goggles are a good investment for any child who plays sports. The glasses your child wears for school are not designed to be protective in the event of a sports trauma. The lens in your child’s fashion frame could easily pop out and puncture or cut the eye. A frame mangled from impact could also injure young eyes. Ask about sports goggles.

 

5 Tips to Healthy Eyes this Summer

Karen Griffith 2 Comments

Contact Lens Safety in water [heading centered=”yes” margin_bottom=”no”]Wear sunglasses with UV protection[/heading] 
Did you know that it is actually possible for your eyes to get sunburned?! Just like your skin, your eyes need protection from the sun. Wearing sunglasses outdoors is very important in protecting your eyes from harmful UV rays. Excessive exposure to UV light can also increase your risk for developing early cataracts and macular degeneration. When looking for a new pair of sunglasses, make sure that they have a minimum UV 400 protection and that they block both UVA and UVB rays. Additionally, sunglasses will provide a shield of protection from dust and debris that can get blown into your eyes, which is a great added bonus, especially on those windy beach days!
[heading centered=”yes” margin_bottom=”no”]Maintain safe wear and care of contact lenses[/heading]
Keep your eyes healthy this summer by practicing safe contact lens wear. Long days, hot weather, travel, and lots of time outdoors can put you at a higher risk of developing a contact lens-related eye problem. In order to minimize this risk don’t forget to maintain proper contact lens hygiene! Remember to make sure that your hands are washed before handling your contact lenses, always use fresh contact lens solution, and minimize contact with water; this includes removing your contacts before going swimming or in a hot tub. And if you notice any redness, irritation, light sensitivity, decreased vision, or discharge, do not wear your contacts and call the office immediately.

[heading centered=”yes” margin_bottom=”no”]Wear protective eyewear[/heading]
Summertime often means working on projects around the house. This can include gardening, painting, remodeling, etc. that can potentially result in small objects flying around. Make sure you wear proper eye protection during these activities. And by eye protection, this does not mean regular glasses or sunglasses, this means professional quality goggles with impact resistant lenses and full coverage frame. You’ll also want to be sure to protect your peepers while playing sports, especially those that utilize small sized balls, such as golf balls, squash balls, and badminton shuttlecocks. Wearing proper eyewear can prevent up to 90 percent of serious eye injuries. If you do experience an eye injury, make sure to call us so that a proper eye health examination can be performed.
[heading centered=”yes” margin_bottom=”no”]Avoid chemicals and natural irritants[/heading]
Chemicals found in pools and bacteria often found in lakes and rivers can be harmful or bothersome to your eyes. Be sure to always wear goggles if you will be opening your eyes while playing or swimming in water. Other natural irritants that you may be exposed to while outdoors or hiking can include poison ivy, oak, and insect bites. If you find yourself outside near these irritants, be mindful of keeping your hands clean after touching plants, as rubbing allergens into your eyes can be very uncomfortable. If you notice any eye irritation, swelling, or redness, after any of these activities, contact the office so we can aid in determining the cause and help relieve your symptoms.
[heading centered=”yes” margin_bottom=”no”]Schedule your yearly eye examination[/heading]
Since you and the kids often have a little extra free time over the summer, it is the perfect time to schedule your annual eye examination?! A comprehensive eye exam is one of the most important preventative ways to preserve vision, and is the only way to accurately assess the health of your eyes, diagnose an eye disorder or disease, and determine if you require corrective lenses. Catching potential eye problems early could save your vision in the future, and that makes for an extremely bright and happy summer! Schedule online.

Eye Safety Month

admin

October is eye safety month, what precautions are you taking to prevent eye injury and trauma?

Protective EyewearAt Westside Optometry we have a complete selection  of sports eyewear for the young and the experienced athlete. Protective eyewear is as important to your game as proper shoes and padding. Sports goggles can be made in all prescriptions, with or without a tint.

 

Protective eyewear isn’t just for the workplace or industrial setting, Most eye injuries happen at home. Non-prescription protective eyewear is available at hardware stores. If you safety framesusually wear glasses, prescription safety glasses are recommended. All our safety eyewear is available with side shields and meet the ANSI.

 

Click here to learn more about eye emergencies.

Safety Glasses

admin 1 Comment

Most people wouldn’t dream of mowing the lawn barefoot. But most people don’t hesitate to  weed-whack without protective eyewear. Eye injuries from  rocks and debris thrown by household tools like lawn mowers, chain saws and weed trimmers occur daily.

weed wacker

In California, OSHA regulations and enforcement of personal protective equipment have reduced the number of injuries in the workplace. Now most eye injuries happen at home.

 

What makes safety glasses safe?

Safety frames must pass two rigorous impact tests, which dress frames do not undergo, to be marked Z87 (the ANSI, American National Standards Institute, requirement). A special device call an Alderson Head Form, which simulates a physical human head is used.

The High Velocity Impact Test

A 1/4″ steel ball traveling at 150 feet per second is directed at different designated positions on the front and side of a frame glazed with plano lenses. No contact with the eye or head form is permitted as a result of the impact, nor shall any parts or fragment be ejected from the protector that could contact an eye of the head form.

The High Mass Impact Test

A pointed projectile weighing 17.6 ounces is dropped from a height of 51.2″ on a glazed frame. No parts or fragments shall be ejected from the protector that could contact an eye of the head form.

Prescription Safety Frames

If you need correction to see, safety frames can be made with prescription lenses that meet ANSI. The lenses and frame will have Z87 on them. The lenses must pass a drop ball test. (A 1″ steel ball is dropped on the lens from 50″ high.)

Please note that safety glasses and sports glasses are not interchangeable. Sport glasses do not need to pass ANSI tests and safety glasses are not appropriate for sports applications.

If you are working in the yard or the garage, put on a pair of safety glasses. Westside Optometry has different styles of ANSI approved safety glasses to make in prescription. We offer safety frames in plastic and metal materials with side shield options.

To see chart of  eye hazards and the recommended protective device, click here.

Don’t Become a Statistic

admin

I saw a few statistics about protective eyewear and sports this week. The most important fact about wearing safety eyewear for sports is that it prevents you and your children from becoming one of the following statistics. This information is from the US Department of Health and Human Services:

 Nearly 2.5 million eye injuries occur each year.
 More than a quarter of these injuries occur during sporting and recreational activities.
 Children under 15 years of age account for nearly one-third of all eye trauma hospital admissions and 43 % of sports and recreational eye injuries overall

It is important to remember that even if an eye injury seems to be minor it may be serious. Loss of vision, severe pain or tenderness and cuts around the eye require immediate medical attention. Secondly, if you do go to the emergency room, are discharged, but your vision and/or eye still do not seem right, give me a call. I have seen patients after ER visits with foreign bodies still in the eye and undiagnosed broken orbit bones (the bones around the eye).

More than 90 % of all eye injuries can be prevented with the use of appropriate protective eyewear. Sports participants using corrective eyewear or sunglasses that do not conform to safety standards are at greater risk of eye injury than participants using no eye protection at all. Safety frames must pass two rigorous impact tests, which dress frames do not undergo. Basically, a steel ball and a pointed projectile are dropped on the lenses of the glasses. No parts or fragments of the frame or goggle can fly off which might contact the eye.

The lenses in regular eyeglasses could easily pop out and puncture or cut the eye. A frame mangled from impact could also injure the eye and face.Slam safety glasses