High school and college students are under serious stress. Classes, extracurriculars, and trying to keep up with Bama Rush Tok is enough to give you a serious headache. In addition to the multivitamin you’re probably (sometimes) taking, there are a few other tips you should consider to stay healthy, so you never miss a beat (or an OOTD post).
Eye care is important, but most of us don’t think about it unless something goes wrong with our vision. Vision problems can sneak up on you, and eye-related injuries are more common than you think.
The good news is that experts say that 90% of all eye-related injuries are preventable by wearing eye protection. Avoiding eye infections and vision-related conditions may be as simple as making smart choices and being a little more conscientious about your lifestyle.
If you’re a little lost, Stoggles has the cheat sheet.
We do know eyes, but we also know that nobody is going to protect their eyes just because we know eyes or because we told them so. We’ve given safety a new look — one that's easier to wear and easier on the eyes (pun intended).
This is what Stoggles do best. If all you have is a hideous pair of goggles that make you uncomfortable, of course, you don’t want to wear them. So yes, we know eyes and fashion; we’ve combined them in a pairing so iconic it can only be compared to salty & sweet, Spongebob and Patrick, and the weekends and sleeping in.
We’re here to give you 12 tips to help keep your eyes safe and healthy while you’re at school.
Five Tips for Eye Health
An eye infection doesn’t seem like a big deal… until you have one. Pain, itching, burning, watering, and the hallmark oozing of green mucus are common with infections like conjunctivitis (and there are about a zillion different ways you can get it).
Eye infections can take days to weeks to heal and can interfere with your ability to drive or even attend class. Avoid them by following these hot tips:
1. Don’t Touch Your Eyes.
Seriously.
If you have to remove your contacts or need to rub your eyes, wash your hands first. Bacteria spreads by touch, so making sure your hands are clean will help eliminate bacteria from your keyboard, phone, or other places (ahem) from reaching your eyes.
2. Don’t Share Eye Products.
Makeup, eyeglasses, and eyedrops are single-user products. The new Tarte palette your bestie has may not be in your budget this month, but neither is a pricey urgent care visit and a script for antibiotic eye drops.
Even eyeglasses and bottles of eyedrops can occasionally touch the eyelids and shouldn’t be shared with other people. Take a cue from your toddler days and refuse to share these items with your friends, and you’ll all have healthier eyes as a result.
3. Hit the Laundry Center (or Your Laundry Room)
If you’re away at college, laundry is likely last on your list of priorities, especially if Mom is more than happy to do it for you when you come home on break. Unfortunately, that means items that regularly come in contact with your eyes (like your pillowcase) are breeding grounds for bacteria and germs.
Take your laptop to the laundry center and wash your bed sheets (or at least the pillowcase) once a week to keep them free from bacteria. If you wear an eye mask, that needs washing too.
4. Throw Away Compromised Items.
If you do get an eye infection, you’ll need to assume that the eye products you’ve used recently contain infectious bacteria. Replace mascara, eye drops, and/or contact lenses if you get an infection so that you don’t keep reintroducing bacteria into your eyes.
5. Be Sex Smart
Both gonorrhea and chlamydia can spread to the eyes and result in a type of conjunctivitis that requires a visit to the doc and antibiotics. Avoid it by following rule #1 before and after safe sex.
Five Tips for Eye Safety
Safety glasses may seem so middle school, but not wearing them could result in literal blindness. You read that right. Each day, more than 2,000 people sustain eye-related injuries, and about half of those injuries lead to a trip to the emergency room.
If you haven’t already covered the anatomy of the eye in class, we’ll give you a quick lesson on why eye safety is so important. Retinal cells are specialized cells that give you the ability to see. They can’t regenerate, so when they are damaged or destroyed, a portion of your vision goes with them.
Your eyes aren’t protected by much; a thin layer of eyelid skin and some fibrous tissue (called the conjunctiva) are all that lies between your retinal cells and sudden death-er-sudden injury. Keep them safe with these five safety tips.
1. Wear Sports Glasses.
Whether you’re on an athletic scholarship or just trying your hand at intramural sports, wearing glasses while you play ball is important to keep your eyes safe. Shatter-resistant glasses are a must, and you can find the best by looking for the ANSI Z87.1-2020 certification seal.
This seal means the glasses have passed both a high-velocity impact test and a high-mass impact test to ensure the glasses won’t shatter if you’re struck with a high-speed or heavy object.
Hint: Safety specs can still be stylish, like if you choose cat-eye frames or classic square frames in fun colors.
2. Get UV Protection.
Ultraviolet radiation can damage your eyes just like it can damage your skin. UVA and UVB rays can cause early onset macular degeneration, which means you could see a decline in your vision in your 40s and 50s instead of your 60s and 70s.
Taking steps to protect your eyes now will help keep your eyes safe for a lifetime. Stoggles eyewear is crafted from lightweight, uber-comfortable polycarbonate material, which any good engineering student can tell you is naturally UV-blocking.
3. Shield Yourself.
Whether you’re in the lab or working on a project at home, wearing safety eyewear is essential, and having the proper type makes all the difference. Many safety glasses feature wraparound lenses, which provide coverage over your temples where normal glasses don’t.
The problem is: these glasses still leave your eyes vulnerable near your eyebrows, and the wraparound style can have a funhouse mirror effect on your vision, especially if you have prescription lenses. Instead, opt for side and top shields that give you all the protection you need without the trippy vision side effects.
4. Clear the Fog.
Just like regular glasses, safety eyewear can fog when you move from cold to hot environments or wear a mask. If you’ve tried anti-fog wipes or drops, you know they only provide a temporary fix for a really annoying situation.
Instead, opt for safety eyewear that has been treated with an anti-fogging solution, like Stoggles. This solution changes the way water vapor collects on the surface of the glasses, so your glasses never fog.
We spent basically a full academic year (nine months) creating our unique anti-fog solution to replace the traditional spray method. Our method involves dipping the glasses into the solution for an even coating. Think of it this way: Would you rather have a chocolate-covered pretzel that was dipped into chocolate or spritzed with a thin, uneven layer of chocolate from a spray bottle? Exactly.
5. Don’t Substitute Your Regular Glasses for Safety Glasses.
If you wear corrective lenses, it’s tempting to just wear them instead of safety eyewear so you can see clearly, but regular glasses aren’t created to withstand impact or to protect your eyes like safety glasses.
At Stoggles, we offer prescription safety eyewear that is both protective and stylish, so you can see clearly, protect your eyes, and protect your burgeoning reputation. Plus, unlike wraparound shades, the prescription on Stoggles will never warp. Yeah, we’re nostalgic for Warped Tour, not the warping, fun house effects of the sports goggles our parents made us wear.
Two Tips for Digital Eye Care
You know you’re going to spend a ton of time online, whether it’s studying, writing, or swiping right (or left). There are two big issues to know about computers, phones, and eye health:
- Less blinking. Blinking keeps your eyes healthy and hydrated, but when you’re staring at a screen, you naturally blink less. This can result in dry eyes, and over time the situation could become dangerous to the health of your eyes.
- Blue light. Blue light is emitted by the sun, but it’s also emitted by computer screens, tablets, smartphones, and LED televisions. Blue light can penetrate the eye and reach the retina, which could mean long-term damage.
Staring at a screen for a long time can lead to digital eye strain and Computer Vision Syndrome, which results in eye pain, itching, excessive tearing, eye strain, and even headaches. Avoid it by following these tips.
1. Use the 20-20-20 Rule.
For every twenty minutes you are looking at a screen, take a 20-second break to look at something 20 feet in front of you. This will help ensure you are blinking enough and give your eyes adequate time to hydrate and focus on something other than text.
2. Wear Blue Light Blocking Eyewear.
Blue light-blocking lenses protect your eyes from intrusive blue light by filtering it out, much in the same way UV glasses block sunlight. At Stoggles, our lenses are outfitted with blue light filtering technology at the time of manufacture (as opposed to a coating), and every single pair of Stoggles has this feature. Now you can scroll eyewear trends on TikTok totally pain-free.
Sleep, Study, Stoggles, Repeat
High school and college are incredible times that will often feel overwhelming. Don’t worry; you’ve got what it takes to make the grades and have fun at the same time.
While you’re spacing off online, head over to Stoggles and grab the best-looking, most protective eyewear available. It’s one thing you can take off your plate and an easy way to get peace of mind about eye safety, whether you were worried about it or not.
And if you’re worried about reliving your middle school science lab days, don’t be! Stoggles protect your eyes without making you feel like you’ve got your 7th-grade safety goggles on. In fact, you might feel so cute that you post a pic of your specs on IG — actually, we encourage it!
Sources:
Pink eye (conjunctivitis) - Symptoms and causes | Mayo Clinic
ANSI/ISEA Z87.1-2020: Current Standard for Safety Glasses | ANSI
Preventing Eye Injuries | Prevent Blindness
The Eye and STIs | The Canadian Association of Optometrists
Ultra-violet and Blue Light Worsen Macular Degeneration | AMDF
