Why do people need glasses?
A lot of people need glasses. Most people eventually do.
In a normal eye, light comes in from the environment and is focused by the front portion of the eye to a nice, crisp point directly on the back portion of the eye, their retina.
But in some patients, that light doesn't focus correctly on the retina. Maybe it's in front of or behind the retina.
In the case where the eye is too long or that focusing system is too strong and light is focusing in front of the retina, that's called nearsightedness or myopia.
Nearsightedness means good near sight. So, these people can see well up close, but they cannot see so well far away. And they would use glasses to see things more clearly far away.
On the other side, if their eye’s focusing system is too weak or if their eye is too short, the light is theoretically focused behind the retina. This is called farsightedness or hyperopia.
Farsighted means good far sight. So, these people can generally see pretty well far away but then struggle or really have to focus in order to read up close.
In order to adjust for this light that's not focused correctly on the retina, we use lenses to move the light.
A concave lens would move the light farther back.
A convex lens would move the light forward.
It's great because we can use lenses to move that light to make sure that it focuses crisply on the retina.
So, the next time that you're wondering why you need glasses and your friend doesn't, just remember that eyes, like people, come in all different shapes and sizes.
About EyeMed
EyeMed Vision Care is a leader in vision benefits.1 We deliver stand-out vision benefits, and an outstanding member experience across America’s largest vision network.2 EyeMed is based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Learn more at eyemed.com.
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