By David Goldberg
Vision can make or break your patient’s game, no matter what sport they play.
That’s why suggesting the right lens for each athlete is so important.
The proper lens can help an athlete line up the ball for that grand slam or eye up that perfect snowdrift for a sick carve.
It’s not just about performance enhancement, either.
Above all, lenses can protect a person’s precious eyesight from injury, ensuring they’ll be able to enjoy the sports they love for years to come.
“The right lens can provide sharper vision as well as better comfort and protection,” says Martine Ahier, senior marketing manager of brands and products at Essilor Canada. “Both the frame and lenses should be made from highly impact-resistant materials and fit perfectly on the face. For any outdoor sport, sunglasses help eliminate glare and enhance contrast, significantly improving our reactions.”
Golf, for instance, presents a whole new round of challenges for athletes who have to fight blinding sunlight, making it difficult to follow the ball or see a clear path to the green.
Perfect for the links, Essilor’s Stylistic wrap lenses, in single-vision and Varilux, provide wide fields of vision, excellent sharpness, contrasts and dynamic vision using patented W.A.V.E. 2.0 Technology, which integrates all pupil diameters in the lens calculation and reduces high-order aberrations. They fit most wraparound frames and, combined with Xperio and Crizal, provide great vision under the sun.
Out on the water, rapidly changing light conditions are the biggest eyesight issue to contend with. That’s why polarized lenses are the best option, whether catching waves on a surfboard or casting a fishing line trying to catch “the big one.”
Olivier Debregeas, head of sales and marketing at Carl Zeiss Vision Canada, says that polarized lenses are specially designed to prevent light reflections and annoying mirror images as the sun’s rays hit the wet pavement or metal surfaces.
“These lenses protect wearers from eye fatigue because the eyes no longer have to adjust to constantly changing light conditions,” explains Debregeas. “Also, people who wear these lenses tend to be a lot more relaxed and feel better about wearing glasses while playing sports.”
For skiers and snowboarders, tackling gnarly drifts in the mountains is all about maximizing contrast.
ZEISS has a lens that makes skiing and snowboarding safer. SONAR technology in each lens, will improve vision in the snow and detect obstacles, while enhancing brightness and contrasts, helping the wearer to read every bump and dip on the landscape.
PHANTOM POWER
If you are searching for a sunglass that offers a competitive advantage, superior protection and an extraordinary visual experience for multiple sports, Bollé Phantom lens from Centennial Optics is your best bet.
The Phantom lens is a combination of 3 advanced technologies that revolutionize vision; made with NXT material that is lightweight and high impact resistant,” says René Gerber, senior marketing manager for Bollé Brands in North America.
“The Phantom lens features a molecular photochromic filter that adapts to any light condition, a high contrast filter to boost colours and significantly enhance vision and a high performing anti-fog/anti-scratch coating that is 40% more durable than the standard coating.”
The Phantom lens also comes in sport-specific lenses.
For tennis, there’s the Phantom Court, which enhances contrast to highlight yellow and white colours allowing players to clearly see the ball and lines on the court no matter the weather conditions.
For water sports, Phantom+ is the ideal choice as it was created for strong sunlight and water reflection as it offers outstanding polarization that reduces eye fatigue by minimizing glare.
For cycling, the Phantom Clear Green lens which goes from category 1 to category 3 is ideal as you always have the right amount of light no matter the weather conditions.
For golf, the Phantom Brown Gun will raise your game to the next level. This lens was developed to improve the contrast of green colours and to enhance depth perception so you can clearly differentiate between greens and fairways.
GRAND SLAM SPORTS LENSES
With prescription sports lenses, you no longer need to choose between performance and protection. “Offering sharp, wide fields of vision even in challenging weather conditions, HOYA Vision’s lenses and anti-reflective treatments can help you outperform the competition – and look great doing it,” says Dale Mouscos, marketing manager for Hoya Vision Care Canada.
“These sports lenses are a must-have for patients who take their sport seriously. The high-curved lenses are designed for wraparound frames, providing a snug, comfortable fit and protection at both the front and side of the face.”
HOYA lenses also offer wide, clear fields of view essential for many sports along with full UV protection. And you don’t have to sacrifice style for comfort. HOYA sports lenses come in a wide range of stylish mirror colours and polarized options with HOYA’s new Sun Program.
Another great all-around sports lens option is the Sport Progressive lens from IOT, available to Canadian ECPs through Plastic Plus, which has the flexibility to fit any frame.
“It has an excellent performance in any frame no matter the frame curve or frame dimensions, so a lot of people when they play sports have high-wrap frames,” says Plastic Plus vice-president Jason Faibish.
This lens is ideal for a high-wrap frame because it can put on any base curve and there’s going to be very little distortion in the peripheral vision which is ideal for playing sports of any kind.
“Engineered with Digital Ray-Path technology,” says Faibish, “this lens takes into consideration the natural eye movements when looking in all possible gaze directions, it’s more versatile than any other single vision lens.”
Featured image: Hoya Visions Sport Lenses
