Eye injuries are preventable. All that you need to do is wear protective eyewear. Each day approximately two thousand American workers suffer injuries to their eyes that require treatment at a medical facility. Not only do these eye injuries cost man-hours but they also may require treatment in a hospital’s emergency room. If your eyes are weak, you need to choose prescription safety goggles to protect you against common eye hazards that are present at your workplace.
Common eye hazards
Dust and concrete particles along with metal particles represent a common eye hazard. The same goes for debris and building materials as well as shattered glasses. Smoke and other poisonous gases are also something to worry about as are chemical splashes. When you are cutting or welding, you can easily suffer an unwanted eye injury.
Corneal abrasions are a very common type of eye injury suffered at the workplace. The same holds for pieces of metal or concrete lodging themselves in your eyes. Chemical splashes, burns, and welder’s flashes are other common eye injuries for which you need to be wary.
Protect your eyes
Safety goggles and especially those which have prescription lenses are used to protect your eyes from contact with a flying object or hazardous liquid. This kind of eyewear is specially designed to resist impacts and will not shatter even when struck by a flying object or hazardous material.
When do you need protective eyewear?
If you are a carpenter or electrician, or if you operate a machine or do some plumbing work, then you need to wear safety eyewear. The same is the case for those who work as welders and who handle chemicals as well as laser devices. Before you choose prescription safety eyewear, you need to look at how well it can protect you against specific dangers. Also, the goggles need to fit comfortably and should not cause any discomfort. They should also ensure that your vision is not hindered in any way and the goggles should also ensure that you can move about freely.
Have your prescription on hand
Another thing that you need to do is look for a pair of prescription safety goggles that incorporate the prescription lenses. You should have your latest prescription available before you make your choice. Your eye care provider will help you with your prescription though you may have to bear the costs of the eye examinations.
A tight fit is required
Your prescription safety goggles must fit very tightly and must also completely cover your eyes and the eye sockets. They will also completely cover the area around your eyes to provide suitable protection against impacts as well as dust and chemical splashes.
Though you can buy goggles that fit over your prescription glasses, that is not a good solution. Goggles with prescription will offer the best protection by forming a seal around the eye area. In this way, they can keep dangerous objects away from your eyes.
Allows air to flow to ensure lenses do not fog up
The best prescription safety goggles are those that have vents to allow some air to flow in and to ensure the lenses don’t fog up. The fit should be snug around the eye areas to ensure that nothing can strike your eyes. There are also goggles with indirect vents that allow air to move about freely but these goggles cannot protect your eyes against chemical splashes. However, they do provide the same amount of protection as direct vent goggles.
Non-vented goggles
A pair of non-vented prescription safety goggles includes both the frame and lenses but it does not have any holes to allow air to pass through. They are much more able to protect your eyes against vapors. However, you will need to ensure that the lenses receive an anti-fog coating to prevent them from steaming up when you are at work.
Laser safety goggles
Another type of goggles that protect your eyes is the laser safety goggles. These are special items that protect your eyes against the intense light concentrations produced by lasers. You need these if the equipment you are using and the operating conditions at your workplace warrant their use. The best such goggles are those that have obtained ANSI approval.
It is also a good idea for you to pick goggles that are made from polycarbonate material. This is the recommended material for your lenses as they are excellent at providing impact resistance to flying objects.
Polycarbonate is a very light plastic that is capable of absorbing ninety-nine percent of UV lights and so is very useful.
If you are working with chemicals, then you may want to pick prescription protective goggles that incorporate glass lenses because glass is more resistant to chemicals and solvents. If your work involves continuous cleaning, then this is the type of eyewear you should choose.
The good news is such protective eyewear is available in many sizes and can either have a single lens or double lens. Just make sure that your eyewear fits your face perfectly. A close fit is very important as then there is not much chance that an object can strike your eyes from the sides. Good fit also ensures the eyewear will be comfortable to wear.
These days, you can pick and choose from a wide array of options in terms of style and colors. Thus, there is sure to be a pair that suits your every need and taste. You should be able to choose your eyewear as that increases its acceptance and you will also be more likely to wear the protective eyewear at your workplace.
Now that you know how to choose your prescription safety goggles, go ahead and shop for them with confidence. Buying your eyewear from an online store makes sense as the options are many and the prices are lower. GlassesCanada.com is a good online store having plenty of options for you to choose from. The best part is that you can buy a good quality pair at a very affordable price from this site. So, make sure that check out what they have to offer.