(626) 359-3937
When you buy a new pair of glasses, choosing the frame that complements your face and fits your style is the fun part. But the most important part of your new eyewear is the lenses. Modern lens technology has come a long way, offering a wide array of advanced materials and special coatings that can make your glasses thinner, lighter, more durable, and more comfortable to wear. Understanding these different lens options will help you have an informed conversation with your optician and allow you to customize your glasses for your specific vision needs and lifestyle.
Lens Materials: Beyond Just Glass
While glass lenses are still available, the vast majority of modern lenses are made from advanced plastics that are lighter, thinner, and more impact-resistant.
- Standard Plastic (CR-39): This is a good, affordable option for lower-strength prescriptions. It offers excellent optical clarity but can be thicker and heavier in higher prescriptions.
- Polycarbonate: This is the material of choice for children’s eyewear, safety glasses, and sports goggles. Polycarbonate lenses are significantly more impact-resistant than standard plastic, making them much safer. They also have built-in UV protection.
- High-Index Plastics: For people with strong prescriptions, high-index lenses are a game-changer. A high-index material bends light more efficiently, which means it can correct your vision with less material. This allows the lens to be made noticeably thinner and lighter than a standard plastic lens of the same prescription, reducing the “coke bottle” effect and making the glasses much more comfortable and cosmetically appealing.
Lens Coatings: Enhancing Performance and Protection
Lens coatings are micro-thin layers applied to the lens surface to add a variety of performance-enhancing features.
- Anti-Reflective (AR) Coating: This is one of the most popular and beneficial coatings. It dramatically reduces the reflections off the front and back surfaces of your lenses. This has several key benefits: it allows more light to pass through the lens for sharper, clearer vision; it reduces distracting glare, especially when driving at night; and it makes your lenses nearly invisible so people can see your eyes more clearly.
- Blue Light Filtering Coating: We are constantly surrounded by screens—computers, smartphones, tablets—which emit high-energy blue light. A blue light filtering coating is designed to selectively block a portion of this blue light from reaching your eyes. Many people find that this can help to reduce digital eye strain, fatigue, and headaches associated with long hours of screen time. As the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) discusses, while the long-term effects are still being studied, managing screen time and eye strain is important.
- Scratch-Resistant Coating: While no lens is completely scratch-proof, a scratch-resistant coating is a hard, clear layer that makes the lens surface much more durable and resistant to the minor scratches that can occur from daily wear and cleaning. This is a standard feature on most quality lenses.
- UV Protective Coating: Just like your skin, your eyes need protection from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation. A UV protective treatment can be applied to clear lenses to block 100% of UVA and UVB rays, protecting your eyes and the delicate skin around them.
Your Monrovia Experts for Eyeglasses
The right combination of lens material and coatings can have a major impact on your visual comfort and the performance of your glasses. A knowledgeable optician is your best resource for navigating these choices. For residents of Monrovia, CA, the experienced team at Plaza Vision Optometry can help you select the perfect lenses and coatings for your new glasses. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.