Ways to protect the eyes in the hot sun

Ultraviolet rays at very high levels in hot sunny days cause a lot of damage to the eyes, so they need to be carefully shielded when going out, while avoiding looking directly at the sun to protect the retina.

Southern provinces are in the heat wave of the summer. The temperature measured in Dong Xoai and Binh Phuoc is highest at 40 degrees Celsius. Thermal background in HCMC is a little lower than neighboring provinces, but also varies from 36-38.2 degrees Celsius. The impact of global warming, the average heat in the southern region exceeded the same period last year by 0.7-1.5 degrees.

As noted by the Hydrometeorological Station of the Southern region, the intensity of UV rays (ultraviolet rays) in Ho Chi Minh City in the past few days regularly maintained the alarming level (from 9-10), adversely affecting health people.

UV ultraviolet radiation causes skin darkening, aging, sunburn, skin cancer. This is also the cause of serious eye damage, leading to cataracts and macular degeneration - the leading blind eye diseases today. The World Health Organization recommends that, from level 3 onwards, UV rays have started to affect the body badly. When the threshold is continuously exceeded, UV rays are easy to damage the eyes and skin if in direct and frequent contact.

Vision is affected under the influence of UV rays

The higher the UV index, the more UV rays to the ground, the shorter the time to damage the eyes. According to the US Vision Council (VCA), UV rays often burn the cornea after 15 minutes of continuous exposure, causing eye irritation or disorders such as blurred vision, temporary vision loss, aura, feeling as there are relics in front of the eyes, tears .

UVA rays attack cataract, while blue light damages the retina and macula.

When deposited at the eye, ultraviolet radiation (UVA) destroys the proteins that make up the lens, causing them to lose their elasticity, clump, slowly causing the lens to thicken and become opaque. , causing eyesight to decrease. The World Health Organization estimates that around 16 million people worldwide are blind from cataracts globally each year, 20% of which comes from exposure to UV light in the sun.

In particular, high-energy radiation - HEV , also known as blue light , accounts for up to 30% in the sun, also affects the bottom of the eye, degrades the retina, and destroys the epithelial cell layer. RPE retinal factor, causing macular degeneration. The American Eye Institute (NEI) said that the sun makes the eyes aging quickly, the disease degenerates the macular points earlier and gets worse.

Damaged RPE causes the visual cell layer to die, affecting serious vision.

Protect eyes properly, limit the harmful effects of UV rays

In fact, it is very difficult to remove UV radiation due to the presence of ultraviolet rays at any time of the day, including early morning and late afternoon. 90% of the ultraviolet rays still penetrate the clouds. They can even penetrate clothing, or damage the eyes even when standing in the shade because they are reflected on many other surfaces such as glass, sand, concrete or sea surface . If If you have to leave the house in the period from 10am to 4pm, you should consider choosing the following protection measures:

- Wear sunglasses when going outdoors: Wear sunglasses that have UV protection to help minimize the harmful effects of ultraviolet rays on the eyes. UV filtering depends on the color and glass material (polycarbonate material can filter about 50% of UV rays). Light yellow and amber black glass filters UV better than other colors. Copper-colored, red-brown glass works to filter blue light. Should choose to buy real glasses, quality, avoid buying cheap glasses, fake products to not cause further damage to the eyes.

- Wear a wide-brimmed hat, limit the view directly into the sun: Wide-brimmed hats help to shield the face when outdoors, helping to reduce the direct impact of UV rays on the eyes. As recommended, 10h-15h is the time when the intensity of UV rays is the strongest, the eyes are very vulnerable if you look directly into the sun. Should choose a type with a width of more than 2.5 cm, cover two-thirds of the face.

Broccophane essence helps with eye care from the inside, minimizing the harmful effects of UV rays.

- Eat fruits and drink plenty of water: Not only provide adequate vitamins and minerals, the addition of fruit and water also helps the body to be healthy, limiting dryness, preventing unpleasant reactions due to light. the sun caused.

- Supplementing eye-specific nutrients: Natural essences are considered "sunscreens" from inside for the eyes as Broccophane contributes to ensuring the integrity of the structure and function of the lens and retina. - The two most important components determine vision.

Research at the molecular biology level, recently US scientists have discovered Broccophane essence has the ability to enhance Thioredoxin - small molecular protein capable of protecting the retina and neutralizing substances that make variables Change the protein structure of the lens. This essence helps with eye care from the inside, minimizes the harmful effects of UV radiation and blue light, improves symptoms of soreness, eye strain and prevents cataracts and macular degeneration.