I am afraid my glasses will make my eyes worse…

A very common issue amongst both adults and children prescribed glasses is that many of these would go days or weeks without wearing them

Some avoid wearing glasses because they do not like the way they look, whilst others simply forget to put them on. However, many individuals do not wear glasses because of the long-held misconception that this will tire your eyes and make your prescription and sight worse. Let us debunk this myth.

Firstly, why do we need glasses?

When light rays from an object are not focused exactly by the eye’s focusing mechanism onto the light sensitive layer of the eye, called the retina, blurring of vision is perceived by the individual. This can be further subdivided into short-sightedness and long-sightedness. These errors mainly occur when the focusing mechanism of the eye is not proportional to the length of the eye. Apart from that, if the curvature of the eye’s front surface eye is not spherical, this creates a problem known as astigmatism. Collectively, all of these are known as refractive errors, and these irk not only patients, but also ophthalmologists. This is because 43% of global visual impairment is due to uncorrected refractive errors. In fact, uncorrected refractive errors are still the second commonest cause worldwide of visual impairment, after cataracts.

In children under the age of 8, glasses are essential for proper eye development. When you wear glasses, you ensure that your retina receives a clear image, which helps promote healthy eye development in the first years of life. If a child has a refractive error, especially longsightedness or astigmatism, and does not wear glasses, there is a high probability that they would develop a lazy eye. It is therefore essential that all children between 4 and 5 years of age have their eyes checked, and that they strictly wear their glasses at all recommended times, until at least 9 years of age. Up to this age, it is also important to ensure regular checkups, to pick up and correct in a timely manner any changes in their prescription. After the age of 9, check-ups should be then be scheduled when the individual experiences a noticeable change in their vision.

An individual’s prescription can also change in adolescence, especially for short-sightedness. Regular follow-up and correction of their prescription is important to ensure good vision, especially at school. Then, up till 40 years of age, most check-ups would be needed for other eye problems or to simply confirm the prescription before buying a new frame.

With increasing age, the eye starts to lose its ability to focus on nearby objects, and individuals would find an increasing need for near-prescription glasses. Usually, up till 45 years of age most will need at least a prescription of +1, which increases to +1.5 by 50 years, +2 by 55 years, and +2.5 after 55 years. After the age of 60 years old the prescription usually stabilizes and unless cataracts or other problems develop, changes would be minimal.

This all goes to show that the worsening in an individual’s prescription is simply the natural progression of the eye’s lifecycle. It is not due to wearing of glasses. When people do not wear their prescription, the most noticeable problem is immediate visual impairment, due to the refractive errors mentioned. This blurred vision will prevent people from performing everyday tasks, such as reading, driving, working, or participating in their favourite activities. Another problem is that when the glasses are not worn, this causes eye strain, leading to headaches, migraines, and nausea.

There is also a number of people who think that glasses make the eyes get better. In truth, this does not happen as glasses are there just to compensate for the refractive error which is already present. They do not eliminate this it, and through wearing glasses this will not change. This is the reason why you do not need to have the strongest prescription possible for your eyes, as you simply only need to correct your vision sufficiently for daily functioning. Indeed, having glasses which are stronger than your actual prescription will also strain your eyes.

Visibly, wearing prescription glasses properly will not make your eyes worse. Rather, they are a safe, useful tool that contribute to the betterment of your vision and daily life.