FOUR MYTHS ABOUT READING AND YOUR EYES

Reading can be stressful on our eyes, perhaps because of this there are a few commonly-held beliefs that are the source of frequent questions from our patients. We discuss these below.

· Reading in the dark will ruin your eyes – Poor lighting will make it more difficult to see and can lead to headaches and eyestrain. Despite this there is no evidence that permanent damage will result from this activity.

· Wearing glasses while reading will make you more dependent on them – While wearing glasses more often may increase the contrast between blurry vision and clear vision (and make you less tolerant of blur) it will not increase dependence.

· Reading with sunglasses will damage your eyes – Actually if you happen to be reading outdoors, sunglasses will save your eyes by protecting them from dangerous UV rays.

· Reading too much will wear out your eyes – There is no “shelf-life” on your eyes that wears down with increased time spent reading. Read as much as you want!

If reading is causing you discomfort, book an appointment to consult with one of our optometrists.

Reference: https://opto.ca/health-library/reading-myths-debunked