What damage can the sun do to your eyes?

By Annie Vong Las Vegas Review-Journal

4 days ago

The afternoon sun light rays pierce through tree branches at Bruce Trent Park, on Monday, July ... — The afternoon sun light rays pierce through tree branches at Bruce Trent Park, on Monday, July 1, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Bizuayehu Tesfaye/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @bizutesfaye

The sun rises over the valley and Strip on another high temperature day on Thursday, July 20, 2023, in Las Vegas (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @Left_Eye_Images

In blistering heat of summer, how can you protect your eyes from sun damage?

Sun damage to eyes can cause both short-term and long-term or even permanent damage, says Dr Eric Brooker, an ophthalmologist from Advanced Vision Institute.

Sun damage to the eyes can range from mild symptoms like irritation to more serious damage like skin cancer.

Dry eyes

Brooker says the heat can cause tears to evaporate faster, causing dry eyes.

“It can start to cause damage to the cells on the on the eye and cause acute red eyes keratitis. Symptom wise, that would show up like irritation or feel like burning sand in their eye,” says Brooker.

Long-term damage: pinguecula and cataracts

Another form of eye damage that could result from sun and radiation exposure is pinguecula formations.

“A pinguecula formation, which is a result of sun damage to the tissues on on the white part of the eye, is very common,” explains Brooker.

“I make it equivalent to getting a callus on your skin. … Basically, what it comes down to is chronic tissue damage and your body trying to repair it. It’s almost like scar tissue on on the eye,” adds Brooker.

Another long-term impact sun damage can have on eyes is speeding up the formation of cataracts.

“Sun damage can definitely aggravate cataract formation, especially in someone that already has a cataract that’s starting to progress,” explains Brooker.

Brooker said cataracts can cause vision loss, change how the contrast between light and dark are perceived, and impact how reds, greens, blues and oranges are seen.

Skin cancer

Brooker also says that sun damage to the skin around the eyes like eyelids are a high risk area for developing skin cancer.

UV exposure can cause a type of skin cancer called basal cell carcinoma.

Protect your eyes from the sun

“Wear sunglasses that that are that are professionally rated, with good UV protection. … And then, wearing hats, like a hat with sunglasses, is like one of the best things to protect your eyes,” advises Brooker.

For dry eyes, Brooker recommends a preservative-free tear eye drop that can be used multiple times a day to keep the eyes lubricated.

For the skin around the eyes, Brooker urges people to wear a facial cream with an SPF rating of 50 or higher to protect skin around the eyes.

Contact Annie Vong at avong@reviewjournal.com.