Q&A: reading glasses

When are reading glasses necessary?

When a person is over 40, the eyes go backwards. That is to say: it is not the vision that diminishes, but the elasticity of the tissues of the lens of the eye. The stretch goes out, reducing flexibility. The eyes no longer switch so well from far to near. Almost no one escapes it. Anyone who finds the fine print a bit difficult does not immediately need reading glasses. The eyes could do with a bit of effort. You can’t really train your eyes. That’s a myth.

What are the signals?

The most well-known signal is that someone is further away from the newspaper or book, because the letters then enlarge, as it were. But at some point the arms are too short. A signal is also that you turn on a lamp or stand near a window to read something. Headaches and tired or burning eyes may be the next sign. Also nearsighted who wear ‘normal’ glasses or contact lenses cannot escape the decline. An extra signal for them is that they increasingly take off their glasses to see something up close.

What do reading glasses do?

The reading glasses are not a magnifying glass. It does not enlarge, but compensates for the lack of sharpness. The reading glasses are an aid when the eye lenses adjust to see near.

How do you purchase the first reading glasses?

First have an eye test done by an optician or optometrist. This involves looking at the strength of the eyes and the distance between the pupils, but the optician can also identify whether there may be a medical cause that makes your vision worse. If there is nothing medically wrong, you can start looking for reading glasses.

When are standard reading glasses suitable?

That varies per person. The ready-to-wear sizes provide a limited range, so that not all eyes will be equally happy with standard glasses. Firstly, the strength of the lenses in standard reading glasses is the same on the left and right, while that is almost never the case with eyes. Furthermore, the distance between the optical centers of the glasses is important. If the optical center is exactly in front of the pupil, it looks the most pleasant. The more the distance between the optical centers deviates from the distance between the pupils, the faster you will suffer from complaints such as headache, fatigue and double vision. You cannot estimate in the store whether the glasses fit, because the eyes adapt as much as possible. The complaints come later. on www.eyeglass.com/infopages.html explains how you can measure the distance between the pupils yourself.

Which reading glasses are there?

People with glasses or contact lenses for farsightedness can take bifocals or bifocals. Bifocals improve near and far vision.
Another option is progressive lenses, which offer three vision distances in one: in smooth transitions you can see far, close and in between (computer or shop window distance). Some people have a hard time getting used to
bi- or multifocal lenses. A ‘lookover’ (half glasses) is a good solution for people who don’t have glasses for farsightedness. The advantage is that you can see far beyond the glasses. You always have to take off your ‘whole’ glasses. The same goes for nearsighted people with contact lenses. They are also well helped with a lookover. You can have glasses specially fitted at the optician. The frame and lenses together are for sale from €20 to €30. Bifocal and multifocal is more expensive. However, there are also standard reading glasses that cost a few euros.

How long do you last with glasses?

The eyes get worse as you get older. On average, it takes someone about three years with reading glasses, after which the strength has to be adjusted. When a person is around 60, 65 years of age, the decline stabilizes. Then the moment of replacement is determined by scratches or the wish for a different frame.