When we hear the term "glaucoma," most people associate it with eye exams and medical marijuana cards. However, this disease is a leading cause of degenerative vision problems, and even blindness if it's caught too late. A good thing about glaucoma, however, is that it's easily preventable with proper eye care and frequent eye exams. So, does wearing sunglasses help prevent glaucoma? 

Let's take a few minutes and learn about the risks of glaucoma, and how wearing shades or safety glasses (along with a few improved life behaviors) can help prevent this degenerative disease.

What is glaucoma? 

Glaucoma is a degenerative eye disease caused by the buildup of fluid in the front part of your eye. Because this fluid causes damage to the optic nerve, glaucoma can cause problems like blurry vision, eye pain, headaches, and nausea. One of the earliest signs of glaucoma is seeing rainbow-colored rings around bright lights, or "halos" in your vision. 

If not treated early, glaucoma can lead to complete or total blindness, and is the leading cause of vision problems in people over the age of 60. 

Can glaucoma be prevented?

That was heavy, right? Luckily, glaucoma is an easily preventable disease, and as long as you're keeping up with your annual eye exams, an optometrist can catch the early signs of glaucoma and work on a treatment to prevent future vision issues. The absolute best way to prevent glaucoma is to regularly get your eyes tested, especially if you're over the age of 40 or work in an environment with lots of debris, like workshops, construction sites, or factory settings. 

There are also lifestyle changes one can make to prevent glaucoma. Eating right and getting enough exercise (particularly cardio) are both linked to glaucoma prevention -- and yes, wearing glasses can help, too. 

Will wearing glasses prevent glaucoma?

Yes and no. Slapping on a pair of shades and calling it a day will NOT prevent glaucoma, especially if you have a genetic predisposition to the disease or highly sensitive nerves in your eyes. However, eye protection is a critical component to preventing glaucoma, especially because eye injury is one of the leading causes of traumatic glaucoma (AKA secondary glaucoma). 

This is especially crucial for people who work in industries like construction and manufacturing, or professionals (and hobbyists!) whose workshops include things like welding tools or carving equipment. 

And yes, we're going to plug our safety glasses here, but for good reason -- ANSI Z87+ certification exists because workers NEED eye protection when they're on the job. A single flying woodchip, metal shard, or spark can cause drastic eye damage, and lead to the end of a career -- and potentially lasting vision problems or blindness, as well. 

Don't let eye safety stand in the way of getting your job done! Bomber Eyewear is proud to have an entire line of ANSI Z87+ certified safety glasses that work as hard as you do. Check out our full line here, including the all-new BUZZ Bomb -- we've gotten so many positive reviews about those detachable side shields that we're ordering a whole new set of inventory!