If you go outside into the harsh sunlight and wonder about protecting your eyes, consider this. Inside your eyes is a pigment called melanin. It's the same pigment that gives your skin and hair its color. Melanin provides more than color. Melanin provides the most powerful protection against UV and visible light. It is nature's solution to the problem of hazardous light. Melanin goes beyond UV Protection Melanin absorbs light smoothly over a broad spectral range. It absorbs the higher energy light more strongly than the lower energy light. So it absorbs UV more than blue, and the blue more than green - and so on. In this way melanin provides protection to the lens of the eye against UV - thereby decreasing the risk of cataracts; then it provides near optimum protection to the retina by filtering the different colors in proportion to their ability to damage the tissue of the retina - thereby reducing the risk of macular degeneration. Because the blue light is reduced, so is the glare; and vision is thus enhanced. However, blue light is not eliminated so that color balance is maintained. All of these features happen naturally with melanin - through the wisdom of nature.   Melanin, the Free Radical Scavenger, Reduces the Risks of Macular Degeneration Melanin has been shown to be a powerful neutralizing agent for free radicals - molecules which are potentially harmful to the body. In the eye, it occurs in the retinal pigment epithelium - behind the retina - where its antioxidant properties reduces the risks of macular degeneration. People with more eye melanin have less occurrence of macular degeneration; people with less eye melanin have greater occurrence of macular degeneration. An exciting possibility is that melanin bound to a contact lens may exploit this function to neutralize harmful free radicals such as super-oxide within the region between contact lens and the eye. For lens applications this is a revolutionary concept which may be of significant therapeutic value.   We Lose Melanin as We Get Older About 15% of our original supply of melanin is lost in the eye by the age of forty and about 25% is lost by the age of fifty. Melanin lenses provide us with a way of compensating for this lost melanin. For people with blue eyes, melanin lenses offer a means of acquiring extra melanin protection in harsh light environments. The role melanin plays in eye protection is critical; opthamologists have reported that melanin in the eye reduces the risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD).   WHAT COULD BE MORE LOGICAL THAN PROTECTING OUR EYES WITH A PIGMENT WHICH IS ALREADY IN THE EYE FOR THAT PURPOSE? Nature provides us with an original supply of melanin at the back of the eye. Researchers believe that this melanin offers both photoprotection and vision enhancement (as does the black paint inside a camera). This valuable photoprotective pigment is lost during the aging process. Melanin glasses provide a way to compensate for this lost melanin. When you look through a pair of melanin glasses, you will be surprised by the brilliant, undistorted color that you can see. In fact, the Farnsworth-Munsell 100 test, which is used to test color vision, show that lenses with melanin have the highest EPF(Eye Protection Factor) values while still preserving color.   The need to go beyond UV protection: Ultraviolet (UV) light is stopped by the lens of the eye and is involved in the formation of cataracts; however, the blue, violet and other colors in the light spectrum penetrate the lens and reach the retina. These high-energy visible rays can lead to Macular Degeneration. We need to go beyond UV and reduce these other rays. Melanin glasses with their higher EPF values transmit less high-energy visible light and provide more protection to the retina.   Brand *EPF Value % Transmission Melanin 40 19 % Ray Ban G-15 9 16% Nupolar 7 17% Transitions (Gray) 3 44% *Eye Protection Factor Scientific information on melanin lenses: In the last decade a growing body of research has produced some very useful results that suggest specific steps for the photoprotection of the eye. Specifically, information is now available on the degree of photo damage to the lens and retina due to light exposure from different regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Studies have shown the spectrum of sunlight from ultraviolet and infrared portions of light produce varying degrees of ocular damage under accelerated testing. This research led to the important role played by UV blocking lenses. The next significant role to selective filters was the introduction of blue blocking lenses which emphasized on glare reduction and contrast enhancement with the removal of blue light rather than photoprotection. At about the same time, the effects of visible light on the retina of Rhesus monkeys were being studied. It was found that damage from visible light, intense enough to cause lesions on the retina, showed a specific dependence on wavelength and revealed what is called the action spectrum. According to this spectrum, blue light is more damaging than green light, and green light is more damaging than red light. The probability for this photochemical damage to the retina increases with this increasing energy or action spectrum. The action spectrum suggests that blue light is the most damaging color but does not need to be eliminated - rather it needs to be reduced more than any other color. Then in following the action spectrum it is reasonable to filter other colors in proportion to their damage, blue more than green and green more than red light. Furthermore, the data suggests a relatively smooth curve for the actual action spectrum. In this case, a smooth curve having the characteristics of increasing absorption with increasing energy would represent a general target in the ongoing evolution of photoprotective lenses. Melanin's absorption spectrum (the pigment in our hair, skin and eyes) is quite similar to the action spectrum for photochemical damage. This interesting, but not surprising result forms the basis for efforts to incorporate melanin into optical plastics.   General facts Almost all blindness in the United States is the result of common eye diseases. (Less than 4% is the result of injuries.) Sunglasses and computer glasses have been shown to greatly reduce the risks of eye conditions caused by UV and other high energy light. 90,000,000 Americans are visually disabled without corrective lenses (70 million are myopic). 75,000,000 suffer from potentially blinding eye diseases. Sunglasses and computer glasses have been shown to greatly reduce the risks of cataracts and Macular Degeneration as well as computer vision syndrome and other eye conditions caused by UV and other high energy light. 30,000,000 visits are made to doctors for eye care each year. 12,000,000 have severe visual conditions not correctable by glasses. Prevention may have made a difference (using the right sunglasses and computer glasses). 6,000,000 new cases of eye disease occur each year. Children should be wearing sunglasses and computer glasses. 2,500,000 are visually handicapped from color blindness. 1,000,000 are legally blind. 1,000,000 are hospitalized each year for eye surgery and medical treatment. Worldwide, 40 million people are blind. Cataract (A loss of transparency in the eye's lens) 5,000,000 have vision obstructed by cataract. Melanin sunglasses and computer glasses reduce the risk of cataracts. 3,500,000 visits are made to doctors' offices each year because of cataracts. 1,250,000 cataract extractions are performed each year. 400,000 new cases of cataract develop each year. Prevention through the use of melanin sunglasses and computer glasses might make a difference. Glaucoma (An increase in pressure in the eye which can injure the retina) 10,000,000 people have above normal intra-ocular pressure that may lead to glaucoma. 2,500,000 glaucoma-related office visits are made to doctors each year. 2,000,000 are visually impaired by glaucoma; 1,000,000 more have the disease but don't know it. 100,000 are presently blind from glaucoma. 5,000 become blind each year from the disease. There is no data at this time about whether or not sunglasses or computer glasses can help. Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) 20,000,000 Americans (1/3 of those over age 50) are at risk of developing AMD. Melanin sunglasses and computer glasses have been shown to greatly reduce the risks of eye conditions such as Macular Degeneration caused by UV and other high energy light. 10,000,000 suffer visual loss due to macular degeneration. Sunglasses and computer glasses do help but wearing sunglasses and computer glasses early may reduce the risk of AMD. 200,000 people develop neo-vascular AMD each year. 100,000 are legally blind from the disease. For more information on AMD and the effects melanin sunglasses and melanin computer glasses have on AMD go to: www.maculardegeneration.org. Retinal disease 12,000,000 diabetics are prime targets for blinding disorders. 1,700,000 have severe visual impairment from retinal disease. 600,000 diabetics are presently at risk of blindness. 100,000 have retinitis pigmentosa (RP), a family of progressive inherited diseases that cause deterioration of the retina and blindness. 60,000 diabetics each year develop proliferative retinopathy, the most sight-threatening stage. 25,000 working-age Americans with diabetic retinopathy could preserve their vision by having timely laser therapy. 25,000 cases of retinal detachment are treated each year (7,000 suffer irreparable damage) 7,000 new cases of blindness are caused annually by complications of diabetes. There is no data at this time as to how and if sunglasses and computer glasses may help. Corneal Disease (The cornea is the clear front covering of the eye.) 10,000,000 experience corneal disorders, such as herpes or dry eye. 10,000,000 million office visits for corneal problems are made each year. 6,000,000 Americans have excessively irregular refractive errors. 4,000,000 have sight impaired by corneal dystrophies. 500,000 cases of herpes are reported each year. 40,000 sight-restoring corneal transplants occur each year. There is no data at this time as to how and if sunglasses and computer glasses may help. Strabismus (Impaired control of the eye muscles). 35,000,000 people have manifested latent muscle imbalance. 7,000,000 struggle with strabismus (cross eyes). 5,000,000 are visually deprived from ambloypia. 700,000 operations are performed each year for strabismus. 500,000 office visits for strabismus are made by patients under 15 years of age 1,000,000 visits by people of all ages 2 - 4% of the population are born with or develop strabismus (the most important cause of visual impairment in children) during their first 6 years of life. There is no data at this time as to how and if sunglasses and computer glasses may help. Uveitis (Inflammation of the middle layer of tissue on the covering of the eye.) 2,000,000 suffer inflammatory disorders such as uveitis which affects the and causes visual impairment. 25,000 cases of blindness are due to uveitis. There is no data at this time as to how and if sunglasses and computer glasses may help. Eye Protection From Sunlight Damage, and Vision Performance with Melanin Lenses ( in sunglasses and computer glasses ) A large part of the optical trade involves the refraction of light in Rx lenses (sunglasses and computer glasses); another part involves the filtration of light. This paper deals with a milestone in the filtration of light - a transition from lenses that filter UV, to lenses that eliminate UV and reduce HEV (the high energy visible) light, to give the eye complete protection from sunlight damage- notably macular degeneration as well as cataracts. The reduction of HEV (by the use of sunglasses and computer glasses) opens up a new lens challenge: the preservation of color perception. This paper also describes the new tests that show how melanin lenses used in (sunglasses and computer glasses) reduce HEV light without disturbing color perception. The optical professional is largely concerned with the refraction (bending) of light in its design and use of corrective lenses (prescription sunglasses and prescription computer glasses). But another important aspect in prescribing and dispensing eyewear is the selective filtration (absorption) of light. While fashion sunglasses and computer glasses lenses obviously fall into this category, lenses that filter sunlight for eye protection have very specific characteristics and demands. As eye care professionals, we are in an excellent position today to understand and utilize these characteristics and better advise the consumer about the proper steps, (through the wearing of the right sunglasses and computer glasses) to reduce the risks of cataracts and age-related macular degeneration (AMD) - the two most important types of sunlight damage. Yet there is still much confusion about how sunlight contributes to these two major eye diseases. This paper contrasts UV filtration, with the recent concept of HEV light filtration, and shows how they relate to cataracts and AMD. In particular, this paper describes and documents vision protection and vision performance provided by melanin lenses (in sunglasses and computer glasses). Finally, it addresses the important issue of scientific accuracy in advertising claims by the trade for lenses that protect against sunlight damage to the eye. Sunlight and the Major Eye Diseases "UV Protection for Cataracts; HEV Protection for Macular Degeneration." The director of the National Eye Institute disclosed, in the Spring of 1999, that AMD will soon reach epidemic levels in the US. The aging baby boomers (1 in 6 at the age of 55 acquire AMD; and the average age of the baby boomers is fast approaching this number) as well as increased life-spans (1 in 3 at the age of 75 acquire AMD), were cited as the primary factors in this looming epidemic. AMD is the leading cause of blindness for people over the age of 55 and the disease will certainly gain increasing attention in the eye care profession. There will be an increasing need for clear statements about what role is played by sunlight and what can be done with protective eyewear. Yet there is currently much confusion about the role played by UV - the reference point for most people when it comes to eye protection. In the adult eye, the UV is filtered by our own crystalline lens ( 1 ) - shown in Fig. 1 in the front of the eye. While this process offers protection to our retina - shown in Fig. 1 in the back of the eye - it is also increases the risks of cataracts for the lens ( 2 ). Fig. 1. Schematic of the human eye. Melanin is in the iris in the front of the eye and also in the back of the eye, behind the retina. The resulting cloudiness in the lens may eventually lead to significant loss of vision; but original vision can be restored by surgical replacement of the damaged lens with a transparent plastic lens. However, the risk of cataracts can be greatly reduced, in the first place, by wearing sunglasses and computer glasses with lenses that filter the UV. AMD is a disease of the macula in the central region of the retina. The macula is rich in rods and cones and is used for seeing detail, as when we look at something, or when we read or drive. AMD may also be related to sunlight exposure; but UV is not a factor for AMD in the adult eye because it is stopped by the lens. Rather, it is the high energy visible (HEV) light - corresponding to the blue and violet portion of the sunlight spectrum - that poses the greatest risk to the retina from sunlight ( 3 ).1. 1. As we age, the lens of our eyes becomes yellow, and eventually brown (4, 5 ). This coloration offers additional protection to the retina because it reduces the HEV. Children do not have this "natural protective filter" and may even be exposed to some of the UVA. Their macula is therefore exposed, throughout adolescence, to greater HEV than adults. To further complicate matters, the transparent plastic lens that is used to replace the cataract lens in the adult does not have this accumulating, yellow protective filter and the patient is abruptly exposed to a relatively higher dose of HEV and even some UVA that was previously filtered by the yellow part of the cataract lens ( 6 ) - at a point in the adult's life where there is typically less antioxidant ( 7 ) capacity in the RPE (behind the retina) to counteract the effects of increased exposure to HEV. While there is not general agreement that exposure to sunlight is a risk in acquiring AMD, there is general agreement, among experts, that if sunlight is damaging to the retina, it is the HEV - not the UV - that is most likely to result in AMD and a prudent position is to wear sunglasses (and computer glasses) that selectively filter HEV light. This is an important point because it is still very common that eye care professionals recommend to consumers sunglasses and computer glasses with UV protection to reduce the risks of AMD. A more precise statement about eye protection from sunlight. A more complete and precise way to advise the consumer about eye protection from sunlight damage is to suggest eliminating the UV - to address the threat of cataracts in the lens of our eyes - and reducing the HEV light - to reduce the risks of AMD in our retina. 2. Melanin. Melanin Helps Vision Performance - by Reducing Glare. Ocular melanin occurs in the iris and in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) behind the retina. This is illustrated schematically in Fig.1. The significance of melanin's role in vision may be appreciated by noting that when we look at things, most of the light that enters our eye is not absorbed by the vision sensors (the rods and cones) of our retina; instead, approximately 90 % is absorbed by the ocular pigment, melanin ( 8 ). Melanin effects vision performance by reducing glare. By reducing the internal reflections of light in the eye, melanin reduces glare in a manner similar to the black paint inside a common camera. The light arriving at the macula consists of image-carrying rays as well as light that has been reflected repeatedly by the inside wall of the eye. These reflected rays cause a type of glare called "veiling" that compromise vision. Ocular melanin reduces these reflected rays and therefore minimizes veiling. In particular it is the HEV portion of these multiply-reflected rays that is reduced the most by melanin. Without this "black paint" there would be significant light scatter inside the eye and subsequent loss of contrast. Glare associated with veiling is particularly problematic during night-driving ( 9 ), and this problem increases with age ( 10 ). Because melanin is also lost with age ( 11 ), it is reasonable to guess that that susceptibility to glare increases as ocular melanin decreases. Conversely, if lenses in sunglasses and computer glasses were lightly-tinted with melanin and used for night time driving, the veiling effect should be reduced. Indeed, when subjects used sunglasses and computer glasses lenses that were tinted with melanin at 80 % transmission (at 550 nm), errors in reading the standard eye chart (illuminated by the headlights of a parked car at a distance of 50 feet) were reduced by an average of 32 % ( 12 ). While science has yet to define specifically how ocular melanin improves vision in humans, it is fair to speculate that the neuro-physiology of the ocular system is uniquely adapted to the optical properties of melanin. Indeed, the transmission spectrum of the yellow to brown, aged ocular lens matches the transmission spectrum of melanin ( 13 ). Fig. 2. Transmission spectrum of the aging, yellow ocular lens, and of melanin. They are the same, suggesting an inherent compatibility between melanin lenses and the neuro- physiological system of human vision. In both cases, the transmission of light is lower for the higher energy, more damaging colors at the shorter wavelengths. Melanin Protects Vision - Against Damage From Sunlight. Over the last 5 million years Nature has been persistently evolving its own technology of photo-protection - Melanin, the pigment responsible for the color of our hair and skin and eyes is also located in the eye for protection against damage from sunlight (14). Melanin provides vision protection by functioning as an antioxidant and by selective filtration of light.2 Located in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), behind the rods and cones, melanin is dispersed and serves as an antioxidant - along with vitamin E and vitamin C. There is some evidence that the three molecules work synergistically to more effectively neutralize free radicals that, left alone, could lead to diseases such as AMD - the leading cause of age and sun-related blindness ( 15 ). 2. Here "antioxidant" means a substance that reduces undesirable oxidation; "selective filtration" means reducing selected colors more than others. 3. Melanin Lenses (in sunglasses and computer glasses) Reduce the Risks of Cataracts and Age-related Macular Degeneration. We developed the technology to synthesize and chemically modify melanin so that it could be incorporated into plastic sun lenses ( 16 ). Melanin sun lenses successfully "go beyond UV" by eliminating all of the UV, and then significantly reducing as much of the high-energy visible (HEV) violet and blue light as is possible - without disturbing color perception. The value of using melanin in plastic filters like sunglass lenses and computer glass lenses draws from the simple logic that melanin is our body's own sun protection pigment (14) and has evolved primarily to provide photo-protection. The UV absorbers in traditional Rx sun lenses, are composed of chemicals whose absorption rises and falls randomly over the UVA, UVB and UVC range of wavelengths.   Buy Now