Protect Your Eyes: Polarize!

Not all sunglasses are created equal. Sunglasses don't simply shield your eyes from the sun. If you lead an active lifestyle and are always out in the sun, you can increase the level of your eye protection by going for polarized sunglasses. Polarized glasses get rid of glare more than conventional sunglasses can.

What Are Polarized Lenses?

Normal sunglasses provide you with a uniform decrease in the intensity of light. Polarized sunglasses protect you more effectively against glare.
Flat surfaces – the pavement, snow, glass sheets, bodies of water or sand – reflect the sun's rays. Instead of being scattered in different directions, the light reflected from flat surfaces travel in a "more organized" manner, usually in a horizontal direction. This results in an increased intensity of light or glare.  What polarized lenses do is filter out this kind of light while allowing light that moves in a vertical direction.

When to Wear Polarized Sunglasses

Polarized sunglasses prevent headaches caused by glare. You also get to relax more and prevent straining your eyes since they are shielded from the glare.
Polarized sunglasses work best if you deal with flat surfaces and when you are outdoors. Enjoy polarized sunglasses while:

• Fishing and boating. Since the sunglasses reduce the glare, you can easily see the fish under the water's surface. You can also see underwater obstructions (such as sandbars and rocks) you may want to avoid.
• At the beach. The sunglasses minimize the reflections both on the surf and the sand.
• Driving. Save yourself from eyestrain caused by the light reflecting on the pavement and the hood of the car. You can easily see road signs and markings.

Outdoor sports enthusiasts, people who are sensitive to light, patients who just had cataract surgery and those whose situation cause them more than the usual exposure to bright light will also benefit from wearing polarized sunglasses.
Polarized sunglasses, though, will not work best when:

• Driving using a car windshield that is already polarized. This will result in light and dark spots that may be visible in the windshield.
• Skiing during icy conditions. Icy patches will not be easily visible when you wear polarized lenses since ice tend to reflect more light as compared to snow.
• Looking at LCD displays. The screens of LCD televisions, cell phones and ATM machines will be difficult to read while wearing polarized sunglasses.

Are your sunglass lenses polarized?

To check whether your sunglasses are polarized, try this:

• Look for a flat surface that can reflect light (i.e. mirror or car windshield).
• Hold the sunglasses a few centimeters from your face while focusing on the surface.
• Slowly rotate the sunglasses. If there is the same intensity of reflected light, the sunglasses you are holding don't have polarized lenses.

Your eyes are valuable. So it is wise to ensure that you do get high-quality sunglasses. Settling for poor quality polarized sunglasses may provide you with a product that does not work as well as you might expect. Much better, if you can get brand-name sunglasses, since you are assured that the sunglasses will live up to the brand's reliable standards. The good thing is that you can get sunglasses at wholesale prices and still not sacrifice the quality.
You can get wholesale sunglasses from reputable websites such as OlympicEyewear.com. This website provides quality but cheap sunglasses at bulk. When ordering polarized sunglasses in bulk, be sure that the sunglasses is clearly marked "polarized".
Whether you are an athlete, an avid fisherman, an outdoor sports enthusiast or simply someone who wants to enjoy life without the discomfort caused by glare, a pair (or more) of polarized sunglasses should be part of your accessory arsenal.