Safety goggles are necessary for work that involves a hazard to your eyes. You might need to use safety goggles for your job or just for projects around your home. If you wear eyeglasses to help you see, you may find yourself in a predicament.
Wearing eyeglasses doesn’t protect your eyes from debris or dangerous chemicals, so you’ll still need to wear safety goggles. However, wearing safety goggles over your eyeglasses can be awkward and impossibly uncomfortable.
Is there a better solution? Let’s talk about the need for safety goggles, how they work with prescription eyeglasses, and what options are available for prescription lens wearers.
What Are Safety Goggles?
When you hear the term “safety goggles,” you probably immediately think of your teenage years spent in a chemistry lab in a pair of plastic goggles that covered half your face. Thankfully, safety goggles have grown up just like we have. (This is amazing!)
Today’s safety goggles are much more streamlined, extremely lightweight, and easier to wear than our old science class standbys.
Safety goggles still work to protect your eyes from hazards while you work on a project. Safety goggles that are certified by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) must meet certain criteria in terms of durability, safety, and fit.
Reasons You’d Need Safety Goggles
You may not think you need safety goggles, especially if you don’t work in an environment that requires them, but even simple tasks around the house can be dangerous to your eyes. Here are some common reasons you would need safety goggles.
- Lawn work. Cutting the grass, weeding, edging, trimming hedges; no matter what you’re doing in your yard, there’s a chance for debris to enter your eyes. Especially if you’re using power equipment like a lawnmower or weed eater, it’s important to keep your eyes protected to avoid injury.
- Home improvement. We know you’re always incredibly careful, but even if you’re just doing a small repair, there’s always a chance you could sustain an injury from a rogue nail or a bit of sawdust. Wearing safety goggles ensures your eyes aren’t at risk while you work.
- Cleaning. Household chemicals can pose a serious threat to your eyes. Wearing safety goggles can prevent a mishap if you spill or spray in the wrong direction. They can also discourage you from touching your eyes with your hands, potentially transferring chemicals to your eyes.
If you work in an environment that requires safety goggles, you already know the importance of wearing them and wearing them correctly. Removing your safety goggles for even a moment leaves you vulnerable to injury.
The problem is, people who wear corrective eyeglasses are often less likely to wear their safety goggles over their glasses.
Wearing Safety Goggles With Glasses
Even if you wear eyeglasses, you’ll still need to wear safety goggles for hazardous activities that require personal protective equipment. You have the option to wear safety goggles over your eyeglasses.
Here’s what you need to know:
Pros and Cons of Wearing Safety Goggles Over Your Glasses
You know you have to protect your eyes, but you also have to be able to see clearly, which requires you to keep your eyeglasses on. Wearing safety goggles over your eyeglasses has a few benefits:
- Eye safety. Your eyeglasses don’t protect you against hazards as well as safety goggles do. They aren’t designed to keep your eyes safe from debris or chemicals, and they can’t withstand impact like a pair of safety goggles can.
- Eyeglass safety. Your eyeglasses aren’t made from the same materials that safety goggles are. Eyeglasses can easily break or scratch if they come in contact with flying debris. Safety goggles can protect your eyeglasses from becoming damaged.
There are, however, some issues with wearing safety goggles over your eyeglasses.
- Poor fit. Most of the time, safety goggles aren’t designed to specifically fit over your eyeglasses. This makes them ill-fitting, which could cause them to slip, slide, or come off while you wear them.
-
Uncomfortable. Because you’ll essentially be wearing two pairs of glasses, it can be uncomfortable above your ears and on the bridge of your nose. The safety goggles can press your eyeglasses into your face, making them feel tight and even causing pain.
If you have safety goggles that fit with a rubber head strap, that can also be painful and pull on your hair.
- Distracting. If your safety goggles don’t fit very well and are uncomfortable, chances are they’re going to distract you. Distraction can cause accidents and injury in hazardous environments.
If your safety goggles don’t fit well over your glasses, you’ll be more tempted to take them off, even if it’s just for a brief break. When you aren’t wearing your safety goggles, you’re vulnerable to injury. You need a better solution.
Prescription Safety Goggles
You may think a pair of high-quality prescription safety goggles are expensive, but fortunately, they’re completely affordable. Your doctor can write you a prescription for corrective lenses that a safety goggle manufacturer can then use to craft you a pair of custom glasses.
Prescription safety goggles are the perfect solution for people who wear eyeglasses but need protective eyewear.
With prescription safety goggles, you can:
- Wear only one pair of glasses. You won’t need to wear safety goggles over your eyeglasses because your safety goggles already have your prescription strength lenses.
- Remain comfortable. You only have one face; why would you wear more than one pair of glasses? Prescription safety goggles take away the need to wear protective goggles over your eyeglasses, keeping you comfortable.
- Get a perfect fit. Never worry about slipping, falling off, or pushing up your safety glasses again. A great pair of safety glasses will fit you without moving around, causing distraction and stealing your focus.
-
Wear the same glasses all day. With prescription safety glasses from Stoggles, you never have to switch back and forth between different pairs of glasses throughout your day. Stoggles exists to provide uncompromised protection with remarkable style.
Our glasses are unique, comfortable, and easily go from day to night, kind of like the perfect suit and tie.
Prescription safety glasses are a better, safer, and more comfortable option than wearing safety glasses over your eyeglasses. Getting a customized pair is easier than you think. At Stoggles, we handle your prescriptions in-house, saving you time and money.
See Clearly: Stylish and Safe
Sure, you can wear safety goggles over your glasses, but you’re going to be uncomfortable, distracted, and maybe even at the risk of some serious ribbing by your coworkers and friends.
A safer, more effective way to keep your eyes protected while you work is by investing in a pair of prescription safety glasses. These glasses are designed to give you the clear vision you expect from your regular eyeglasses with the safety protection you need to do your work.
Stoggles are designed to be so comfortable and attractive you can literally wear them all day. Whether you’re in the lab, at the office, in your shop, or at home, Stoggles keep your eyes safe by:
- Protecting your eyes with ANSI certified specs
- Shielding your eyes from harmful blue light
- Giving you the vision correction you need with prescription lenses
- Offering you fog-free lenses that never put you in a haze
We know you love your favorite eyeglasses. Our glasses feel and look just like them but protect your eyes from injury in any situation.
Sources:
ANSI/ISEA Z87.1-2020: Current Standard for Safety Glasses | ANSI Blog
