Smart Driving
A t the top of the list of occupa-tions with dangerous levels of exposure to ultraviolet light oth-erwise known as, you guessed it, is that of the truck driver. Along with pilots, lifeguards and ski instructors, you are among the workers most at risk of exposure to the sun's harmful rays. Especially exposed are your eyes, which face harsh strain from hours on the road. Effective eyewear that protects them from UV-A and UV-B rays is as im-portant as any tool you use on the job. Any time you're driving into the sun, you certainly want to have eye protection, says Dr. John McEllig-ott, chairman of Professional Drivers Medical Depots and medical direc-tor of Travel Center Clinics of Knox-ville, Tenn. If you wear prescription eyeglasses, he adds, they need to be prescription sunglasses, or you should get lenses that fit over your prescription glasses. McElligott says his clinics see one or two patients a week with eye problems. Occa-sionally, we'll recommend higher-end sunglasses that have UV pro-tection if the person is really sensi-tive to sunlight or they have a light complexion and have more photo sensitivity. A couple of points to consider in choosing sunglasses are whether the lenses are glass or plastic and what color the tinting is. Sunglasses with glass lenses can weigh up to three times as much as plastic models. Over the course of a driving day that can add up. Glass lenses, however, are less likely to scratch. Tint color may be a personal preference. Dark-er shades provide more protection when peering directly into bright sunlight. Yellow is useful at cutting glare from snow, while amber helps provide greater contrast among smart driving MAx KviderA Glare Reduction Choosing the proper shaded eyewear will provide a boost to long-term healthy vision Getregulareyeexams.The AmericanOptometricAsso-ciationsaysifyouhaveno riskfactorsforvisionloss, scheduleeyeexamsevery twotothreeyearsuntil age40,everytwoyears betweenages40and60, andannuallyafterage60.If youhavediabetes,afamily historyofeyeproblemsor areAfrican-American,you mayneedmorefrequent visionexams. Wearsunglassesthat providebothUV-Aand UV-Bprotection.These sunglassesareespecially importantwhennearsnow orwater,whichintensifythe sun'sharmfulrays. Takegoodcareofyour contactlenses.Keepthem cleananddon'twearthem ifyoureyesareirritatedor tired. Eatfruitsandvegetables richinvitaminsthatcan preventeyedisease. Keepyoureyeslubricated. Asyouage,youreyesget drier,anddrivinglonghours canworsenalreadydry eyes.Directtheheatvent awayfromyourfacewhile youdriveandpackmoistur-izingeyedrops. Don'tsmoke.Smokingcan injuretheeyesinmany ways,increasingtheriskof opticnervedamage,cata-racts,maculardegeneration andotherdisorders. Anyactivity,suchasdriv-ing,thatrequiresyoureyes tofocusforalongtime cankeepyoufromblinking enough.Preventeyestrain ontheroadbystopping andrestingyoureyesor washingthemwitheye dropsiftheyarefatiguedor irritated. Checkwithfamilymembers tolearnabouthereditary eyediseases. Maintainingahealthybody contributestoeyehealth. Regularexerciseincreases circulationandlowers bloodpressure,which candecreasetheriskof glaucoma. EyE carE some tips for keeping your eyes healthy from Boston's schepens Eye research institute: ClydeHolmes,ofParma,Idaho,acompany driver for Holman Transportation Services ofCaldwell,Idaho,boughthis$12sunglass-es at a truckstop. They do a good job of cuttingdowntheglare.Iwearthemallthe time.They'realwayswithme.IfIdon'thave them, I get headaches or see glare when I'mdriving. max kvidera June 2009 30 trucKErs nEws