Line Free Eyeglass Lenses For Baby Boomers Join The Digital Age

Boomers past the age of forty know what its like to have arms that suddenly are too short for reading. The lens inside the eye grown throughout your life and as it becomes larger and more rigid the focusing muscle become inadequate for clearing up near vision. That happens around the age of 40 in the United States, earlier in some countries like India. The first response is to push reading material a little farther away so less focusing is needed. Unfortunately, our arms have a limited length and sooner or later you have to make an appointment with the optometrist for that dreaded bifocal lens visit. But today we have the line free progressive multifocal lenses so only your eye doctor knows! The first successful line free lenses were the original Varilux eyeglass lenses and optometrists had to attend a training session and receive certification to dispense this new lens. If the truth be told, mostly eye doctors needed to be trained on convincing eye patients to actually wear the early forms of line free lenses since they had so much distortion of vision to the side and very narrow channels of intermediate sight. That was over 30 years ago and many generations of improvements have been made. The new Varilux lenses and their competitors such as the Autograph lens are vastly improved.  Close to 98% of eyecare patients readily adapt to the line free prescription lenses that have been available the last 5-10 years-But things are taking a quantum leap as lens technology is going digital.

These are not Your Fathers Trifocals!

Traditionally, line-free progressive lenses have been manufactured on rounded metal tools referred to as laps. The manufacturer places the multifocal additive power component of the lens on the front surface in a molding process then then optical laboratory  uses the tools to grind your distance prescription on the back side. Several different steps are required to polish and finish the lens. Today, optical lens suppliers are moving to a technology usually referred to as freeform. Freeform technology allows a lens to be ground by altering discrete areas of the lens instead of having to grind the whole surface with one large tool.  A  diamond tool is used to cut curves on the back side of the lens in points that have been digitized and fed to the cutting machine with proprietary software.The equipment is referred to as computed numerically controlled (CNC) machine tools and they allow cutting the lens in three different axes so any complex multi-curvature lens surface desired can be manufactured. The accuracy greatly exceeds traditional lens methods. It actually is much higher than your optometrist can test for at this time.

Progressive Addition Lenses That Make Your Vision Better

Currently, this precise level of accuracy in manufacturing PALS (linefree bifocals) is utilized by your optometrist to make vast improvements in your eyeglass prescription lenses. The frame size and shape, the distance to your eyes, and the angle of tilt of the eyewear can all be compensated for. Freefrom lenses now have atoric designs on he back surface of the lens. Since Freeform eyeglass progressive lenses are made in an aspheric design, but unlike previous generations of lenses, the aspheric component is ground on the back of the lens instead of being molded on the front. This allows the lens to flatten out towards the edges and provides a thinner, lighter, more cosmetically appealing lens. Because the asphericity is on the back it can be custom ground and correct for optical errors created by astigmatism, allowing every lens to be individually customized. Also, the progressive additive power for reading can also be ground on the back surface of the lens, creating moderate improvements in the peripheral vision. SOme new designs are splitting the near part on he front and back which increases the optical design.

Made to Order Custom Eyeglass Lenses of the Future

Progessive addition lenses have come a long way. No longer are we in the era of lined bifocal lenses, most people will not accept the performance limitations they impose. Linefree lenses will continue to improve as our capacities to test eyesight also improve. The future looks clearer every day!

You can take simple steps to prevent a lifetime of visual disability and blindness for your family by a visit to the eye doctor. Eye wear for sports is an important decision for preventative eye care.  If you or your children are regularly involved in sports, choosing sports eye wear is essential.  A good idea is special pair of eye glasses that look good but offer excellent eye protection from fast moving balls, flying dirt particles, and injuries from fingers and elbow blows to the eye. There are different choices that work better for different sports. The main goal is eye protection and prevention of eye damage. Even in little league baseball pitches may reach speeds exceeding seventy miles per hour. Basketball is very dangerous from eye injuries due to fingers abrading the cornea, the clear tissue covering the front of the eye. A hockey game in Fort Collins recently resulted in a blinding eye injury to a spectator. This was not an isolated event. If spectators can lose sight, think of the risk to the players. Fortunately, face shield are becoming standard in major league hockey. Unfortunately, that is not always true for children and recreational players.

Vision and eye nutrition is very important. You only have one set of eyes, it is important to protect them and have proper vision care.  With sports, the eyes need to be protected while wearing glasses. The last thing you want is for the glasses to break and cause eye damage. Sturdy frames and special lenses are two aspects of sports eye glasses. In most cases they should be certified as meeting American National Standards Institute qualifications for safety frames and lenses. These frames have special grooves to help keep the lenses from dislodging under impact. The standards also call for higher impact resistance for the lenses. Even though it is still allowed, you should never use a glass lenses for sports activities. Even when produced to safety standards, glass is extremely dangerous compared to high impact resistant modern plastic lens materials. They may not be your everyday glasses and it is probably a good idea that they are not. Saving them especially for sports, keeps them strong and in good working order.

Contact lenses are an option for many sports enthusiasts. The wider field of clear peripheral vision can give marked advantages in some sports. Depending on the sport you may still need clear protective goggles over the contacts. While wearing contact lenses during sports can be easier and safer, contact lenses for hard to fit eyes or for those with unusual type of astigmatism, sometimes make it a choice that requires a careful discussion with your optometrist.. Contact lens eye exams will help the optometrist determine the best eye wear for you.  Unless you have 20/20 vision, corrective lenses will be prescribed. Even with perfect vision, you should still have protective eye glasses for many sports.

Most eye doctors offices carry an array of frames in different styles, colors and shapes to fit most any lifestyle.  Let your doctor know whether you are looking for fashion eye wear or sports eye wear. The doctor should be able to point you to the best frames for you.  There are designer eye glasses for sports that are very popular and very resistant, giving you the eye protection you need.  For those who complain of the sun hurting their eyes, specially designed tinted lenses are in order. There are many choices for eye protection that include options like protection from ultraviolet rays and anti-reflection coatings to improve the crispness of vision.

Some sports require unusual lens options. Target Shooting for people over the age of 40 often requires lenses able to focus on the sights at a distance not normally utilized. Competitive swimmers may benefit from goggles’ with the prescription ground into the lenses. Bicycle riders have to combat blowing wind and sweat produced on warm days on their forehead. Fishing and water sports benefit greatly from polarized lenses that eliminate the glare from water surfaces.Whatever your sport, there are usually some unique needs that should be addressed.

Playing sports out on a field with ultraviolet radiation exposure can result in ultraviolet light eye damage. Some prescription and herbal drugs cause light sensitivity and also call for specially tinted lenses to avoid squinting and eye damage. Regular eye exams are necessary for proper eye health and to maintain your vision.

Make sure to ask your eye doctor about options and advise them of your recreational activities, prescription medications, and any nutritional supplements you are taking. It may just save your sight. The number of preventable injuries every year is staggering. Take the time to protect your families eyesight. It is a small cost to compared to a lifetime of blindness.

When it comes to children’s eyeglasses it is important not only to select frames that are safe but to select frames that your child will want to wear.  With children sturdy eyeglasses are essential to withstand childhood play.  The first sign that your child needs glasses could be school vision problems or the appearance of a lazy eye.
Consult with a children’s eye doctor or children’s optometrist to determine your child’s needs.  Depending on the age of the child, glasses can be easily accepted or rebelled against.  The idea is to choose wearing eyeglasses fun, colorful and something that doesn’t hinder them.
Little children under 5 are easy to get to wear glasses on one hand and tougher on the other.  While they are not worried about the social ramifications, they tend to pull them off until they get used to them.  The frames that work best for a young child are the kind that have curved frame ends to hook around the ears and a thin, light framing.  If the glasses are comfortable, do not keep sliding and are light, the child will forget that they are even on.
For older children, especially girls, eyeglasses can be upsetting as they may feel ostracized at school.  A lot of that is changing since we were young, but it does still exist.  The idea with older children and with teens eyeglasses, is to let them be part of the selection process.  Let them choose something that shows their personality and to make a statement.  The more they like the look of the glasses the more they will wear them.  Allow them to try on different frame shapes in different colors.  The more choices they have and the more they try on to see how great they look, the less push back there will be.
Eye health is important, especially in children.  Children’s eye exams should be more frequent than a year as their eyes can change quickly.  Most times they may change three to four times quickly and then settle down for a long while.  If your child has astigmatism, it may either get worse or better over time.  Choosing eyeglasses that your child likes is key.