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Driving while sunlight shines directly in your eyes is not only extremely irritating but also potentially dangerous. A common solution to this problem is to put on a pair of sunglasses. Although wearing sunglasses can often be safer than going without them, this depends greatly on the driving situation and type of glasses.
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When should you wear sunglasses?
If it’s bright enough outside that you have to squint your eyes to see, you should put on sunglasses. If you don’t put them on, you may not have enough visibility to drive safely and may get into a wreck. It’s also important to keep in mind that you may require sunglasses at any point during the year — even in the middle of winter.
The best sunglasses block 99-100 percent of UV-A and UV-B rays. If you see a pair with a UV400 label, this is an indication that they’ll protect your eyes well from harsh sunlight. And if you find one that’s polarized as well, you won’t have to deal with as much glare from metal, snow, or other reflective surfaces.
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It’s a good idea to use glasses with a brown, gray, green, or amber tint. If lenses have a yellow or blue tint, they can distort color to the point that it may be difficult to differentiate between lane lines and other road features. Gray lenses, on the other hand, do a particularly great job of absorbing light without distorting color.
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What style should you select?
The bigger the sunglasses are, the better they typically are for driving. Narrow glasses may make it difficult to look all around the road, but broader ones with wraparound lenses don’t have this issue.
Ultimately, if you want to have more peace of mind on the road, invest in a nice pair of sunglasses.
Amanda Drago lives in West Chester, Ohio with her wonderful family, which includes her adorable dog, Coco. Amanda recently graduated from Miami University with degrees in both marketing and creative writing. However, if she was ever forced to change career paths, she imagines that she would train dogs for movies. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, writing, and watching Netflix. She also has a special place in her heart for theatre and purchases tickets to as many shows as she can. See more articles by Amanda.
