Love Your Eyes at Work This World Sight Day

6 Oct 2023

World Sight Day is an important reminder to keep our eyes healthy. It is organised by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB). Occurring annually on the second Thursday of October, this event raises awareness of the problems surrounding blindness and impaired vision. Their #LoveYourEyes campaign draws attention to these issues. It teaches us to value and take care of our vision. Last year for World Sight Day, over 5 million people made a pledge to have an eye test. This is a significant uplift from previous years. This year, they hope to have 10 million sight test pledges.

World Sight Day is celebrated on the 12th of October. The theme for 2023 is love your eyes at work. It focuses on the importance of eye health in a professional setting. It is an excellent time to reflect on how we can safeguard our sight for the future.

The IAPB created the 4Ps as guidance and inspiration for people to make healthy lifestyle changes and gain fresh perspectives that can benefit the health of their eyes. So, what exactly are the 4Ps and what do they teach us? The 4Ps are — Prevent eye conditions, Protect your eyes, Preserve good vision and Prioritise your eye health. We will be exploring this in more detail. Stay tuned to discover our recommendations, themed around the 4Ps created by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness.

PREVENT

Enjoy a healthy lifestyle

One of the many easy ways you can stay on top of your eye care is by participating in daily exercise and maintaining a balanced diet. This can help prevent specific eye conditions. Remember to take regular breaks during working hours so you can rest your eyes and refresh. Otherwise, you’ll feel drained and unable to complete your workload to a high enough standard.

Eating healthy food throughout the day will ensure you have the vitamins and minerals that are key for maintaining your eye health. Namely, leafy green vegetables full of vitamins and citrus fruit high in vitamin C. You should also try to consume plenty of fish and vegetable oils rich in omegas and fatty acids. Other foods like vegetables, beans and legumes contain minerals like zinc and lutein which can also benefit you greatly.

Top tip: Pack yourself a healthy lunch to take with you to work and prepare meals for those longer days when you get home and have less time to prepare a balanced meal in the evening.

As well as tucking into delicious, healthy meals you should also aim to enjoy frequent exercise. Venture outside for walks, go jogging, or try yoga. These activities can help control high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol. Every one of these health problems can impact the function of your eyes and result in long-term diseases. It is essential to stay on top of your fitness and health in order to prevent the development of life-altering conditions.

Top tip: Use your break at work to go for a walk or join a gym nearby and try out some fun fitness classes!

PROTECT

Ensure you have UV-protected eyewear

It is crucial to ensure your eyewear comes with UVA/B protection. This will shield your eyes from harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun. If you are overexposed to UV rays, this can increase the risk of diseases like cataracts and age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Not only should you wear your prescription sunglasses in the summer, but it is also still extremely important that you protect your eyes from harmful UV rays year-round, even in the colder months. What most people aren’t aware of is that UV rays are far more prominent during the wintertime due to the sun’s lower position in the sky.

At Glasses Direct, we offer a selection of sophisticated lens options that you can choose to upgrade to in place of our free basic lenses. We highly recommend that you opt for one of our affordable lens packages, selecting from either Gold, Platinum, or Diamond. For many reasons, you will benefit greatly from their durability and efficiency, but they also all come with a special coating that blocks UV rays. Treat yourself to a pair of glasses that shield your eyes from the sun’s radiation and stay protected all throughout the year. This is especially important for those who work outdoors a lot.

Reduce your amount of screen time

It is vital that you take regular breaks from your digital screens. Consider following the 20:20:20 rule, which says that every 20 minutes, you should focus your sight on something located 20 feet away for 20 seconds. This can help prevent eye strain and headaches.

On average, people across the globe spend around 6 hours and 58 minutes in front of digital screens. Daily screen time is up by 13% and has risen by almost 50 minutes per day since 2013.

Blue light lenses use a special protective shield that filters blue-violet light. You can apply our BlueReflect™ lenses to your chosen frame. They offer improved visual comfort and have a durable scratch-resistant and anti-reflective coating which reduces glare and unwanted reflections.

PRESERVE

Book regular eye tests

Make it an essential part of your lifestyle to ‘love your eyes’ and educate your friends and family about the importance of having their eyes checked.

Regular eye tests are paramount to preserving good vision. They will not only enable you to get the right prescription for your glasses but they can also help identify signs of any eye or other health conditions before symptoms even occur. Head to your local optician and get your latest prescription, then shop online at a time that works for you with Glasses Direct!

To discover why and how frequently you should book an eye examination, watch the video to learn more from our qualified optician.

PRIORITISE

Check your prescription is correct

You should make sure your prescription is up to date. If your last eye test occurred more than two years ago, you will need to book a new one before purchasing glasses online. The frequency of eye tests can vary depending on your age and personal health. We recommend putting a reminder on your calendar or on your phone. That way you won’t forget! If you’ve made a pledge for World Sight Day, then why not reward yourself and benefit from a brand-new pair of glasses to match your new prescription?

For those of you who currently do not have your prescription to hand, you can always opt to send it later via photo, email, phone, or post. After selecting your frames and lens options, simply click on ‘Send Prescription Later’.

To learn how to read your prescription, browse our informative guide for more details.

Why you should choose Glasses Direct

We hope our advice was helpful and a source of inspiration for you to ‘love your eyes’ this World Sight Day. We understand how important people’s vision is to their lives and care about giving everyone access to eye care services all over the world. That is why we support Vision For Life™’s Buy One, Give One scheme, which you can find out more about on our website.

At Glasses Direct, we provide our customers with professional service and care each step of the way. We urge you to follow our advice and protect your eyes this World Sight Day 2023. It is especially important that you stick to a healthy routine in the workplace as this is when you’re at your busiest point of the day and most distracted.

If you wish to order glasses online, it couldn’t be simpler. Easily navigate our website and apply the relevant filters to narrow down your search and find exactly what you are looking for. Rest assured that every order is signed off by our qualified opticians. Head to our website to explore our latest arrivals and find a fashionable design to suit you!