Benefits of anti-reflective coatings
Anti-reflective coatings improve your vision by allowing 99.5% of light to pass through your lenses instead of reflecting off the lens. The visual benefits are sharper vision with less glare when driving at night and greater comfort during prolonged computer use compared to wearing glasses without an anti-reflective coating. Anti-reflex coatings are especially beneficial on high refractive index lenses, which reflect more light than regular plastic lenses.
The elimination of reflections on the lens also results in an improved appearance of your glasses. The lenses are almost invisible and other people can see your eyes without interference. When purchasing a pair of rimless frames you expect the glasses to be barely noticeable, an anti-reflex coating will help achieve this.
Technological Advances
New generation anti-reflex coatings are easier to clean, more scratch resistant and water repellent. Most of them carry a two-year guarantee against peeling due to manufacturing defects.
Blue-Violet light blocking coatings filters out harmful UV and Blue-Violet light but let essential light pass through. Recent studies have shown Blue-Violet light emitted by LEDs present in smartphones, computer screens, tablets and lighting to be harmful to the eyes. Blue light in the visible spectrum closest to the UV spectrum penetrates deep into the eye. Unlike UV light, the anterior structures of the eye are not very effective at blocking Blue light. Less than 1% of UV light reaches the retina whereas virtually all blue light passes through the cornea and lens. Long term exposure increases the risk of Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD). In addition to health risks, Blue-Violet light causes digital eyestrain due to a decrease in contrast and disrupts sleep patterns by throwing out the body’s circadian rhythm.
Not all Blue Light is bad: Blue-Turquoise (Essential) light contributes to your well-being. It helps with colour and shape perception, is also natural form of light therapy , helps regulate your sleep patterns and triggers pupillary reflex which controls the amount of light that enters the eye.
For more information on visit All About Vision – Blue Light: Bad for your eyes?
For more information on Computer Vision Syndrome and Digital Eye Strain visit Seeing & Believing – The Eyesight Resource
Anti-reflex brands we recommend:
- Seiko Optical: Super Clean Coat (SCC); Super Resistant Coat (SRC)
- Essilor: Crizal Easy UV; Crizal Forte UV; Crizal Prevencia (blue light and UV filter)
- Focus Optical: CleAR
- Hoya: HVLL; SHV; Blue Control
- Use only recommended lens cleaners on your anti-reflective lenses. Harsh chemicals will damage the coating. Don’t use Sunlight liquid or any creamy, coloured soap to clean the lenses.
- Always wet the lenses before cleaning them. Using a dry cloth to clean dry lenses will cause scratches.
- Only use a micro-fiber cleaning cloth. Rub gently in one direction.
- Don’t leave your glasses in the car or in the sun for too long. The heat exposure will damage the coating.