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People spend a lot of time and money on protecting their skin and hair from sun damage, but eye protection is too often neglected. However, shielding the eyes from ultraviolet rays should be a habit for everyone.

Ultraviolet light or UV light is electromagnetic radiation that is invisible to the human eye. The sun gives off radiation in UVA, UVB, and UVC bands. Although the ozone layer of the earth blocks most of the radiation, a substantial amount can still penetrate.

Consequently, the emphasis on buying sunglasses for UV protection cannot be overstated.

What Can Sun Damage Do to The Eyes?

Overexposure to UV radiation can cause various eye problems. Although the inner eye does have some in-built protection, ultraviolet radiation can still cause significant damage, particularly to the lens and the retina.

As such, both cataracts and the onset of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) have been linked to sun damage. Additionally, in the short term, sun damage can also cause photokeratitis, which is essentially sunburn of the eye (cornea) and very nasty.

Are Cheap Sunglasses Safe?

Some experts say that many cheap shades offer little to no UV protection, and that inferior sunglasses can actually do more harm than good.

This is because the vast majority of cheap sunglasses merely just block visible light, which causes your eyes to dilate slightly. Therefore, if the sunglasses you are wearing offer no UV protection, potentially, a greater number of damaging UV rays will penetrate your eyes, through the dilated pupil.

Choosing UV sunglasses in the UK

Sunglasses on the market differ wildly in the quality of UV protection that they offer. As a result,it is important to know about the various types oflenses that sunglasses have available in order to determine the ones that can protect against the rays of the sun most effectively.

UV protection cannot be determined by justlooking at the price, design, colour and tint. Sunglasses should have a proper label that lists the type of protection they offer. Look for these labels when purchasing shades.

When buying sunglasses for UV protection in the UK, always check that your desired shades have a CE, UV 400 or British Standard Mark. Doing so will ensure they provide you with the adequate level of UV protection needed.

Does Sunglasses Shape and Size Matter for UV Protection?

In relation to UV protection, it is very important to choose sunglasses that will fit your face. This is because sunglasses that fit your face shape tightly, in theory, will not allow any light to enter your eye from around the lens. 

To help you find the right sunglasses for your face shape when buying sunglasses online, we’ve created a Face Shape Guide for Sunglasses that provides you with customised sunglasses recommendations.

Buying Sunglasses for Fashion

In addition to protecting the eyes from the harmful UVA and UVB rays of the sun, sunglasses are also a part of fashion. For this reason, many famous brands have their own line of designer sunglasses to complement their range of stylish clothes, bags and shoes.The main advantage of choosing designer sunglasses over inexpensive basic ones is quality assurance.

At Discounted Sunglasses, we stock a wide range of sunglasses by fashionable eyewear brands at some of the cheapest price you’ll find anywhere online – and best of all, they all offer excellent UV protection.

To read more about how we are able to offer you the choice of so many designer sunglasses at such low prices, you can check out our About Us page.