Vision Solutions for Athletes

How to Improve and Protect Your Eyesight During Sports

Are you having trouble catching, hitting, or tracking the action? In sports, having good vision is crucial. Learn about some of the ways you can improve your vision while performing as an athlete.

Take Eye-Boosting Supplements and Eat Colorful Foods

When tracking a ball, light is scattering off the object. As that light scatters, it creates motion blur. Motion blur can be exacerbated by blue light not being filtered well enough by our eyes. The macula, based in the center of the retina, is made up of yellow pigments that absorb and filter blue light. As we age, these macular pigments start to deteriorate and allow more blue light through.

To help improve eye filtration of blue light, we must supplement our bodies with the lost carotenoids, or yellow pigments, lutein and zeaxanthin. These are found in orange, yellow, and green foods, such as carrots, spinach, and egg yolks. Pigment supplements also advertise that they improve eye performance.

With better filtration of blue light, athletes should, in theory, be able to decrease motion blur and glare, and improve depth of field, peripheral vision, and contrast.

Contact Your Eye Doctor and Choose the Right Lens Tint

Since light is made up of a variety of colored wavelengths, each color has a different impact on aspects of your vision. Choosing a specific colored lens will therefore filter out different types of light and improve your visual acuity. Consult with Marano Eye Care in NJ about what might benefit your eyes best, but in the meantime here’s a quick guide on how different lens influence your eyesight:

• Yellow and Orange Lenses: Improve contrast in low-light conditions for both indoor and outdoor sports. Help filter blue light.
• Amber, Rose and Red Lenses: Improve contrast in partly cloudy and sunny conditions, but each cause color imbalances.
• Dark Amber, Copper, and Brown Lenses: Block high levels of blue light. Good for contrast with grass and blue skies.
• Green Lenses: Slightly improves contrast while maintaining color balance.
• Gray Lenses: Reduces overall brightness and maintains normal color recognition.

Choose Sport Specific Eyewear

Each sport has its own equipment requirements. This includes eyewear. As with other pieces of equipment, eyewear should be designed to improve performance but also protect the region from potential harm. Check out our list of recommendations for some of New Jersey’s most popular sports:

• Baseball and Softball: When fielding, you want something light and secure that will reduce glare and improve ball tracking. Find a good pair of polarized sports sunglasses that have shatter-proof lenses and a head strap. When batting, consider a helmet with a polycarbonate face shield. This can help reduce glare while also providing better protection from errant fastballs towards the head.
• Basketball: Consider goggles to protect the eyes. Goggles are less likely to intrude when you are going up for a rebound or taking it in for a drive. If you’re having depth perception issues, consult with your doctor for special lenses.
• Cycling: Get sleek sports sunglasses that have anti-fogging qualities. Anti-fogging is crucial when working up a sweat or dealing with cold weather cyclists are accustomed to.
• Football: Use a polycarbonate shield that attaches to your helmet. It will protect your eyes from both the sun and prying hands. A penalty being called is hardly a consolation for a scratched cornea!
• Golf: Wear polarized sunglasses to improve ball tracking and reduce glare.
• Skiing and Snowboarding: Don’t you know how important it is to protect your eyes during the winter? Read our Winter Eye Care tips if you don’t. The winter can dry out your eyes and cause even worse UV damage due to light reflecting off of snow. Get some quality ski goggles for optimal protection or wraparound polarized sunglasses that have a mirror coating.

Get Lasik Surgery

Why deal with prescription glasses at all when there’s an easy solution in Lasik eye surgery? Lasik has become the go-to solution for individuals of every ilk, but the benefits can be even more pronounced for athletes. British optometrist Geraint Griffiths studied how mildly blurred vision can impact the performance of tennis players and clay pigeon shooters. The results confirmed that having clear vision is just as important, if not more important, than the ability to project the trajectory of an object.

Come and talk about your options for Lasik eye care in New Jersey.

Use Anti-Fog and Anti-Scratch Lens

Having glasses that feel good on your head, protect from UV rays, and help reduce glare is great. But, it’s pointless if your vision becomes impaired because the lens become scratched or fogged up! Anti-fog and scratch resistant features for sports lenses are key.

Improve Your Eyes for All Activities with Marano Eye Care

Marano Eye Care – in Livingston, Denville, Cedar Knolls, and Newark, NJ – is dedicated to providing top quality care to each of our patients. Are you an athlete that has been suffering from poor vision? Contact us today to make an appointment near you.