Most of us don’t go a day without wearing sunglasses, but do you even know if they perform the task they were designed for? Sunglasses are the most effective defense against UV (ultraviolet) light and yet, many people aren’t even sure if their favorite sunglasses have adequate UV protection against the sun’s rays. Unprotected extended exposure to UV rays can produce incredibly severe consequences for your eyes, so testing the stated UV protection of your sunglasses is, at no time, a bad idea.
We'll cut straight to the point, there are only two ways to test the UV protection of sunglasses. The first is to visit your local optician to see if they can test the lenses for you. The second is to test them yourself with a UV light flashlight at home.
Both will require a little more work from you, but we will outline the steps below to walk you through the process as efficiently as possible.
Opticians have many great tools at their disposal and should easily be able to check your sunglasses UV protection for you. What they use is called a spectrometer or lensometer, and a UV protection test can be performed in as little as a few seconds. Better yet, most opticians will gladly do this for free! If not, you may want to shop around for a new optician while you’re at it!
Testing Your Sunglasses UV Protection at Home
1.) With a UV flashlight (like this one found here on Amazon) you can shine the light beam at paper money or a credit card to reveal the built-in security elements. These security elements will illuminate and appear to glow when exposed to UV light.
2.) After you have confirmed the security elements have reacted to the UV light, take your flashlight and direct the beam through the lens of your sunglasses. If the security elements are no longer visible, then your sunglasses have 100% UV protection.
if the security elements are still visible your sunglasses don’t feature adequate UV protection. This would be rare, even for cheaper examples, but it can still happen.
Determining the Results
You also may detect light making it through your lenses when using the UV flashlight and that is completely normal. Apart from emitting UV light, which your eyes can’t see, the flashlight will also emit visible light.
Some of this light will make it through your lenses to illuminate the paper money or credit card you are using for the test. Just be sure to recognize the differences between the straight UV light compared to when the UV light is blocked and the visible light hits the test subject.
Remember, if the visible light couldn’t penetrate your lens then you wouldn’t be able to see anything at all!
Believe it or not, wearing sunglasses without UV protection is actually worse than wearing no sunglasses at all. When you wear sunglasses, the dark tint will naturally cause your eyes to dilate which lets in more visible light. If your sunglasses feature little to no UV protection, your eyes will dilate and actually allow more UV light to enter as well.
In fact, regular clear lens glasses with 100% UV protection would protect you than sunglasses without UV protection in this instance. We recommend you never wear sunglasses without full UV protection also known as 400 UV protection.
UV Light Explained
UV light is produced from the sun’s rays and enters our atmosphere in three different variations. Each has their own risks and can affect your eyes or body in different ways. This includes mild sunburn to cancer and even blindness in extreme cases.
UVA
UVA rays represent the most common form of UV light making up 95% of all UV rays to reach our eyes. They are arguably the most dangerous form of UV light and can deeply penetrate your unprotected skin or eyes to create significant and considerable damage to your vision. Overexposure can lead to skin cancer and photo-aging (wrinkles) as well as cataracts, macular degeneration and photokeratitis (snow blindness).
UVB
UVB rays are the second most common to reach our eye making up 5% of all sunlight. This is the type of UV ray that most of us are familiar with as they are the culprits behind surface sunburns. The skin around your eye is especially delicate, and sunglasses lacking UV protection can result in sunburn and sunspots even with your sunglasses on.
UVC
Despite what the marketing departments of the world’s most popular sunglasses will compel you to believe, UVC rays don’t actually make it to our eyes. UVC rays are completely burned off as they enter our atmosphere and present little to no risk to you. A real-life example of UVC rays would be the arc created by a welding torch. This can most definitely damage your eyes which is why all welders wear extremely darkly tinted welding helmets and goggles.
Blue Light
Blue light rays are found towards the end of the visible spectrum right before non-visible UV rays. Scientists are still studying the long-term effects of blue light, but there is enough evidence to say it causes eye strain and fatigue at the very least.
The most typical form associated with eye health comes from your phone and computer screens but blue light can also be found naturally as well. And like most things in life, blue light is fine in moderation. In fact, most scientists agree that exposure to some blue light can increase awareness and cognition, as well as elevate your mood.
How Lens Material Effects UV Protection
Some lens materials like polycarbonate and Trivex have UV protection built into them which requires no added coatings to provide full UV protection. Other materials, like CR-39 plastic and optical glass, don’t inherently include UV protection built within. They simply achieve it through protective coatings applied to the outer surface of the lens.
UV Protection FAQ
Why is UV protection important?
Prolonged exposure to UV rays can cause numerous health concerns for your eyes. If left unprotected, UV rays will start to cause cataracts, growths and even cancer. In situations where the sun’s glare is intensely bright, like being on the open water or out in the stark white snow, you can experience what is called photokeratitis or “snow blindness. A quality pair of sunglasses with 100% UV protection will all but eradicate these concerns.
What is the best UV protection rating?
The best UV rating in the eyewear industry is known as UV400 protection. This simply means that the lenses will block all light ray wavelengths up to 400 nanometers which covers all UVA and UVA light. Anything less will allow some amount of UV light through which will start to affect your vision health over time.
What are the differences between polarized lenses and UV Protection?
If you’re just starting your research into a new pair of sunglasses, all this terminology can get quite confusing. Polarized lenses and UV protection are frequently confused and many people wonder about the differences between the two.
Polarized Lenses
Polarized lenses work by blocking sunlight that concentrates (polarizes) on a flat surface like water, snow, and roads and reflects into your eyes. This intense glare is blocked by horizontal elements in the lenses to increase color and clarity for you.
UV Protection
UV protection is typically built into the lens or applied to the surface as a coating to protect your eyes from damage caused by UVA and UVB light.
Sunglasses Can Have Both UV Protection and Polarized Lenses
Neither polarized lenses or UV protection are mutually exclusive from one another. What we mean is, sunglasses can, and many times do, include both of these features. In, fact, we typically recommend investing the extra money to buy polarized lenses for their amazing clarity and glare stopping properties.
Should I wear sunglasses on cloudy days?
UV light is always prevalent, even when the clouds are blocking out the sun. Many people think they can put their shades away on these days, but that should almost never be the case. If you are having a hard time seeing while wearing sunglasses on cloudy days, we would recommend procuring a pair of sunglasses with lightly tinted lenses. This way you can assure your eyes obtain UV protection and you will be able to see better when compared to your darker lenses.
Does the darkness of the lens tint help UV protection?
Lens tint does nothing to effect UV protection. It only controls how much light goes through the lens to your eyes. If your lens doesn’t include UV protection it won’t matter how dark the tint is. UV light will still get to your eyes where it can cause significant damage over time. In fact, regular clear lens glasses can have 100% UV protection without any tint at all.
The manufacturer of my sunglasses said they had 100% UV protection. Should I test them anyways?
This is completely up to you, but we would be hesitant to wear any sunglasses that weren’t verified to have UV400 protection. The damage caused by UVA and UVB light to your eyes is very real and you were only given one set for life!
Conclusion
It’s easy to overlook the importance of proper UV protection when shopping for sunglasses, especially with all those great styles and vibrant colors to distract you. Don’t commit the fundamental mistake of overlooking this indispensable feature the next time you purchase a pair. Doing so could lead to unnecessary eye damage down the road.
If you are on the hunt for a new pair of sunglasses, be sure to check out our collection of premium Mazzucchelli acetate polarized and mirrored sunglasses here.
Did we miss something? Have a comment or suggestion? Be sure to leave your comments and feedback below!
5 replies to “How to Test if Your Sunglasses Have UV Protection – 2 Simple Steps”
Karen Soghomonyan
I like the article. Its was hekpfull for me. Tough there is one doubt left. How could we see if the uv protection is a uv400 protection. Is there any way to check it by our own? Maybe with the light sensor of the phone and a uv torch?
Glad you liked it! Basically anything close to 100% UV blockage can be assumed to be UV400. If you see a more considerable amount of reaction from the UV element through the lens than it would fall somewhere below UV400. It would be rare for any manufacturer to use anything less than UV400 this day in age it can still happen. Experiencing headaches or itchy / burning eyes on bright days would also be a tell-tale sign.
Most eyeglass lenses have 100% UV protection “built” into them through their manufacturing process. It would be rare for true prescription lenses to not have this feature inherently built-in. I would have your eye doctor run a test if you were unsure or wanted to verify your own findings through a professional.
How to Test if Your Sunglasses Have UV Protection – 2 Simple Steps
Most of us don’t go a day without wearing sunglasses, but do you even know if they perform the task they were designed for? Sunglasses are the most effective defense against UV (ultraviolet) light and yet, many people aren’t even sure if their favorite sunglasses have adequate UV protection against the sun’s rays. Unprotected extended exposure to UV rays can produce incredibly severe consequences for your eyes, so testing the stated UV protection of your sunglasses is, at no time, a bad idea.
We'll cut straight to the point, there are only two ways to test the UV protection of sunglasses. The first is to visit your local optician to see if they can test the lenses for you. The second is to test them yourself with a UV light flashlight at home.
Both will require a little more work from you, but we will outline the steps below to walk you through the process as efficiently as possible.
How Opticians Measure UV Protection
Opticians have many great tools at their disposal and should easily be able to check your sunglasses UV protection for you. What they use is called a spectrometer or lensometer, and a UV protection test can be performed in as little as a few seconds. Better yet, most opticians will gladly do this for free! If not, you may want to shop around for a new optician while you’re at it!
Testing Your Sunglasses UV Protection at Home
1.) With a UV flashlight (like this one found here on Amazon) you can shine the light beam at paper money or a credit card to reveal the built-in security elements. These security elements will illuminate and appear to glow when exposed to UV light.
2.) After you have confirmed the security elements have reacted to the UV light, take your flashlight and direct the beam through the lens of your sunglasses. If the security elements are no longer visible, then your sunglasses have 100% UV protection.
if the security elements are still visible your sunglasses don’t feature adequate UV protection. This would be rare, even for cheaper examples, but it can still happen.
Determining the Results
You also may detect light making it through your lenses when using the UV flashlight and that is completely normal. Apart from emitting UV light, which your eyes can’t see, the flashlight will also emit visible light.
Some of this light will make it through your lenses to illuminate the paper money or credit card you are using for the test. Just be sure to recognize the differences between the straight UV light compared to when the UV light is blocked and the visible light hits the test subject.
Remember, if the visible light couldn’t penetrate your lens then you wouldn’t be able to see anything at all!
Wearing Sunglasses Without UV Protection
Believe it or not, wearing sunglasses without UV protection is actually worse than wearing no sunglasses at all. When you wear sunglasses, the dark tint will naturally cause your eyes to dilate which lets in more visible light. If your sunglasses feature little to no UV protection, your eyes will dilate and actually allow more UV light to enter as well.
In fact, regular clear lens glasses with 100% UV protection would protect you than sunglasses without UV protection in this instance. We recommend you never wear sunglasses without full UV protection also known as 400 UV protection.
UV Light Explained
UV light is produced from the sun’s rays and enters our atmosphere in three different variations. Each has their own risks and can affect your eyes or body in different ways. This includes mild sunburn to cancer and even blindness in extreme cases.
UVA
UVA rays represent the most common form of UV light making up 95% of all UV rays to reach our eyes. They are arguably the most dangerous form of UV light and can deeply penetrate your unprotected skin or eyes to create significant and considerable damage to your vision. Overexposure can lead to skin cancer and photo-aging (wrinkles) as well as cataracts, macular degeneration and photokeratitis (snow blindness).
UVB
UVB rays are the second most common to reach our eye making up 5% of all sunlight. This is the type of UV ray that most of us are familiar with as they are the culprits behind surface sunburns. The skin around your eye is especially delicate, and sunglasses lacking UV protection can result in sunburn and sunspots even with your sunglasses on.
UVC
Despite what the marketing departments of the world’s most popular sunglasses will compel you to believe, UVC rays don’t actually make it to our eyes. UVC rays are completely burned off as they enter our atmosphere and present little to no risk to you. A real-life example of UVC rays would be the arc created by a welding torch. This can most definitely damage your eyes which is why all welders wear extremely darkly tinted welding helmets and goggles.
Blue Light
Blue light rays are found towards the end of the visible spectrum right before non-visible UV rays. Scientists are still studying the long-term effects of blue light, but there is enough evidence to say it causes eye strain and fatigue at the very least.
The most typical form associated with eye health comes from your phone and computer screens but blue light can also be found naturally as well. And like most things in life, blue light is fine in moderation. In fact, most scientists agree that exposure to some blue light can increase awareness and cognition, as well as elevate your mood.
How Lens Material Effects UV Protection
Some lens materials like polycarbonate and Trivex have UV protection built into them which requires no added coatings to provide full UV protection. Other materials, like CR-39 plastic and optical glass, don’t inherently include UV protection built within. They simply achieve it through protective coatings applied to the outer surface of the lens.
UV Protection FAQ
Why is UV protection important?
Prolonged exposure to UV rays can cause numerous health concerns for your eyes. If left unprotected, UV rays will start to cause cataracts, growths and even cancer. In situations where the sun’s glare is intensely bright, like being on the open water or out in the stark white snow, you can experience what is called photokeratitis or “snow blindness. A quality pair of sunglasses with 100% UV protection will all but eradicate these concerns.
What is the best UV protection rating?
The best UV rating in the eyewear industry is known as UV400 protection. This simply means that the lenses will block all light ray wavelengths up to 400 nanometers which covers all UVA and UVA light. Anything less will allow some amount of UV light through which will start to affect your vision health over time.
What are the differences between polarized lenses and UV Protection?
If you’re just starting your research into a new pair of sunglasses, all this terminology can get quite confusing. Polarized lenses and UV protection are frequently confused and many people wonder about the differences between the two.
Polarized Lenses
Polarized lenses work by blocking sunlight that concentrates (polarizes) on a flat surface like water, snow, and roads and reflects into your eyes. This intense glare is blocked by horizontal elements in the lenses to increase color and clarity for you.
UV Protection
UV protection is typically built into the lens or applied to the surface as a coating to protect your eyes from damage caused by UVA and UVB light.
Sunglasses Can Have Both UV Protection and Polarized Lenses
Neither polarized lenses or UV protection are mutually exclusive from one another. What we mean is, sunglasses can, and many times do, include both of these features. In, fact, we typically recommend investing the extra money to buy polarized lenses for their amazing clarity and glare stopping properties.
Should I wear sunglasses on cloudy days?
UV light is always prevalent, even when the clouds are blocking out the sun. Many people think they can put their shades away on these days, but that should almost never be the case. If you are having a hard time seeing while wearing sunglasses on cloudy days, we would recommend procuring a pair of sunglasses with lightly tinted lenses. This way you can assure your eyes obtain UV protection and you will be able to see better when compared to your darker lenses.
Does the darkness of the lens tint help UV protection?
Lens tint does nothing to effect UV protection. It only controls how much light goes through the lens to your eyes. If your lens doesn’t include UV protection it won’t matter how dark the tint is. UV light will still get to your eyes where it can cause significant damage over time. In fact, regular clear lens glasses can have 100% UV protection without any tint at all.
The manufacturer of my sunglasses said they had 100% UV protection. Should I test them anyways?
This is completely up to you, but we would be hesitant to wear any sunglasses that weren’t verified to have UV400 protection. The damage caused by UVA and UVB light to your eyes is very real and you were only given one set for life!
Conclusion
It’s easy to overlook the importance of proper UV protection when shopping for sunglasses, especially with all those great styles and vibrant colors to distract you. Don’t commit the fundamental mistake of overlooking this indispensable feature the next time you purchase a pair. Doing so could lead to unnecessary eye damage down the road.
If you are on the hunt for a new pair of sunglasses, be sure to check out our collection of premium Mazzucchelli acetate polarized and mirrored sunglasses here.
Did we miss something? Have a comment or suggestion? Be sure to leave your comments and feedback below!
5 replies to “How to Test if Your Sunglasses Have UV Protection – 2 Simple Steps”
Karen Soghomonyan
I like the article. Its was hekpfull for me. Tough there is one doubt left. How could we see if the uv protection is a uv400 protection. Is there any way to check it by our own? Maybe with the light sensor of the phone and a uv torch?
Tony Parrish
Glad you liked it! Basically anything close to 100% UV blockage can be assumed to be UV400. If you see a more considerable amount of reaction from the UV element through the lens than it would fall somewhere below UV400. It would be rare for any manufacturer to use anything less than UV400 this day in age it can still happen. Experiencing headaches or itchy / burning eyes on bright days would also be a tell-tale sign.
Inquiring mind
Is it possible to have the UV protection in the glasses re-coated? Can do it yourself?
Tony Parrish
Most eyeglass lenses have 100% UV protection “built” into them through their manufacturing process. It would be rare for true prescription lenses to not have this feature inherently built-in. I would have your eye doctor run a test if you were unsure or wanted to verify your own findings through a professional.
lyndon parrilla
Great Article! Very thorough and informative. Thank you!