Disclaimer: I am neither a doctor nor a scientist and am not making any recommendations regarding your decision to wear or not to wear sunglasses. You are solely responsible for any harm you may endure as a result of your eyewear choices, and for that matter, any of your life choices.
Unless we’re looking directly into the midday sun or spending several hours in extremely bright and sunny conditions, natural sunlight is healthy for our eyes and bodies. When we filter sunlight with sunglasses, we’re processing it so it’s no longer natural. We’re sending inaccurate signals to our brains, which then send inappropriate signals to our bodies about how much sunlight we’re exposed to and how to react to such sunlight.
Absorbing processed sunlight is not that much different from consuming processed foods. In both cases it’s unnatural. Our bodies were not designed for either. They were designed to take in the full spectrum of light and the full spectrum of nutrients.
The human body is a beautifully adaptable machine. It can handle all kinds of adversity expertly without our messing with its functions, including the amount of sunlight to which it is exposed. Humans survived for many thousands of years under the bright sun without sunglasses.
The only times I wear sunglasses are in extreme conditions such as being in the sun all day on the water or in the snow when the sun reflects powerfully off of those surfaces. Other than that though, I never wear them and am perfectly comfortable without them.
These are the benefits I’ve experienced personally:
1. My eyes are less sensitive to light, in a good way.
I used to need glare-reducing eyeglasses to drive comfortably at night without having to squint through the headlights of oncoming traffic. I no longer need them at all. I’m also perfectly comfortable being outside in bright sunlight without sunglasses, without any strain or discomfort.
2. My vision is better
I attribute this in part to my sungazing practice as well as my regular healing meditations, but I used to need eyeglasses for computer work so I could see the words clearly. Granted, it was a light prescription, but they are no longer needed at all unless I’m tired and my vision is a bit foggy.
That is not to say that your vision will improve by not wearing sunglasses. I can’t speak for anyone other than myself.
3. I almost never sunburn, and I never wear sunscreen.
Although I’m fortunate to tan pretty well generally speaking, I can now spend the whole day in direct sunlight and not burn, without wearing any sunscreen. This was never the case when I used to wear sunglasses. I needed sunscreen or else I would get burned. Now my skin just gets very dark and incredibly sexy 😉
I attribute this in part to the fact that my eyes are receiving the accurate amount of sunlight for what my entire body is experiencing, so my pituitary gland, signaled by the optic nerve, sends my body the signal (melanin-concentrating hormone – MCH) to produce extra melanin, which darkens my skin and absorbs the ultraviolet (UV) radiation to prevent cell damage and sunburn.
To be clear, if it’s early spring and my skin has lightened throughout the winter and I go to a tropical island, I am not be able to spend all day in the sun. I have to work up to that point – it’s a gradual process each year.
I’m sure you’ve heard that it’s easier to get burned on hazy days than clear days. It’s the same idea: the brightness of the sun is not getting to your eyes, so the pituitary gland can’t tell your body to produce extra melanin, but the same high amount of UV radiation is still penetrating the haze, causing you to burn.
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To summarize, when the eyes perceive sunlight, they signal the skin to darken to protect itself appropriately, proportionally. Although this idea makes sense to me and is true in my own personal experience, there is disagreement among experts, and I am admittedly no expert. I’ll leave it up to you to decide for yourself whether or not this is the case, and again, I make no recommendation for your decision whether or not to wear sunglasses. It’s your life and your decision to make. The purpose of this post is simply to make you aware of an idea that you may not have heard of: sunglasses could be harmful.
Of course this is not to say you can just go out into the sun without sunglasses without burning. If you’re not used to it and you try it for an extended period, you will probably get burned and also hurt your eyes. Everything in moderation always, and some of you with lighter skin and eyes will always be more prone to sunburn and eye damage than those of you with darker skin and eyes.
As always, listen to your body. It doesn’t lie. If you feel that you’re getting burned, or you feel that you’re straining your eyes, you probably are, so find some shade.
You can work up your tolerance to the sun and spend more and more time without sunglasses until you’re more comfortable being without them. Just like you shouldn’t go to the gym for the first time and try to deadlift 495 lbs (like your humble correspondent can – yes, I’m bragging), you shouldn’t immediately try to go all day in the sun without protection.
UV radiation has been shown to cause different eye related ailments, but in my opinion, these ailments are often caused and exacerbated by improper sunglass use. Again, the human body is a highly adaptable, magnificent machine.
Wearing cheap sunglasses that don’t offer UV protection can be extremely harmful. Your eyes are shielded from the brightness, so your pupils dilate, meanwhile all of the harmful UV radiation is still penetrating the glass and going deep into your eyes to the retina. This can cause some serious eye issues, so if you insist on wearing sunglasses, at least make sure they afford full UV protection.
But even if your sunglasses do offer full UV protection, if they’re not large and don’t cover your entire eye area, your pupils will still be inappropriately dilated for the amount of UV light penetrating them from the sides and above, not to mention the amount of sun to which your skin is exposed. Maybe you’ve experienced eye pain and/or headaches after spending a lot of time in the sun with your sunglasses. They could be the cause.
Even if your sunglasses block all of the UV and cover enough of your eyes not to allow any in through the sides, your eyes are still receiving inappropriate signals given the sun-drenched environment in which you find yourself, possibly leading to increased proneness to sunburn. So you could wear such sunglasses along with high quality sunscreen, but wouldn’t you rather go au naturel?
Many people throughout history have spent all day outside under the sun without sunglasses and they did just fine. Maybe they wore hats if it was really sunny. We don’t need sunglasses, and in my opinion, we would be better off without them, generally speaking.
Again, I’m not making any recommendations, just stating my beliefs with regard to sunglasses, and that they are, in general, unnatural and harmful. Any decisions you make with regard to your eyewear are at your sole discretion and you alone are responsible for any negative effects you may experience as a result of those decisions, as with everything in life.
That said, enjoy the summer. It is finally upon us, it being 90 degrees in Connecticut as I write this 🙂
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Sources:
http://health.howstuffworks.com/skin-care/beauty/sun-care/sunscreen4.htm
http://www.nature.com/jid/journal/v120/n1/full/5601715a.html
http://philmaffetone.com/sun-and-brain
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/21/opinion/21wang.html?_r=1&
http://healthland.time.com/2009/08/04/can-cheap-sunglasses-be-bad-for-your-eyes/
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/09/16/sunglasses-myths.aspx