Watch Out for These 5 Summer Eye Dangers

You protect your skin from sunburn and your body from injury, so why not your eyes?

During summertime activities, one specialist has simple advice: Protect your eyes.
Everyday leisure pursuits (and the outdoors) can pose severe and permanent risks to your vision.”
“You get two eyes in life; there is no eye transplantation,” says Theresa Cooney, M.D., a clinical assistant professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center” “Once you hurt your eyes, what you live with.”
Dr. Cooney spoke more about the dangers that peak during warmer months:

1. Sun. Because we can’t put sunblock on our eyes, a combo of quality sunglasses (ensure they block UVA and UVB rays) and a wide-brimmed hat are necessary shields against significant risks.” “Your eyelids are prone to skin cancer, as the sun bounces off your nose,” Dr. Cooney said. Sun exposure, she added, has been shown to cause and accelerate cataracts and macular degeneration.
2. Fireworks. It might dazzle a crowd, but setting off fireworks isn’t worth the show. In 2023, 19 percent of fireworks injuries were eye injuries, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. In the most severe cases, fireworks can rupture the globe of the eye and can cause chemical and thermal burns, corneal abrasions, and retinal detachment. Dr. Jennifer Larson, an assistant professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences at the UW U.W.hool of Medicine and Public Health and an ophthalmologist with UW U.W.alth, says these injuries can result in vision loss” “Most people see the harm in sparklers, firecrackers, and bottle rockets. They learn too late that eye protection is necessary,” said Larson. “It’s best to leave fireworks to the professionals. If you celebrate with fireworks, wear safety goggles and take the other necessary precautions to keep you and your family safe”.”
3. Swimming. If you wear contact lenses, you might not want to wear them in the pool, or it is time to invest in a pair of goggles: Timothy Gibbons, OD, an optometrist at thO.D.John A Moran Eye Center at the University of Utah says the FDA does not recommend that contact lenses be exposed to any water, from tap water to showers, hot tubs, pools, oceans, and lakes. Doesn’t matter if it’s freshwater or a chlorinated pool,” Gibbons says. “There are bugs and pathogens that chlorine doesn’t kill, which could potentially cause damage to the cornea, infection or ulcer.” In addition, there are also viruses and microbes in the water, like Acanthamoeba, which attach to your contact lens, causing your cornea to become infected and inflamed. If you contract it, you may lose vision or need a corneal transplant. Gibbons says if not wearing contacts is an option, always wear goggles. Remove the contacts immediately after swimming and soak them in contact solution for 24 hours (or switch to dailies).
4. Yardwork. Lawnmowers and weed trimmers simplify outdoor upkeep. But the powerful machines can cause dangerous momentum.” “When those blades move, they shoot things out—including stone,” said Dr. Cooney, who notes that a punctured eye is a common resulting injury. Avoid this scenario by wearing protective goggles with shields when working in the yard.
5. Sports. Any small ball that can fit into the eye socket presents an issue”We’rere talking mostly baseballs, racquetballs, tennis balls, anything that comes at a high velocit”,” Dr. Cooney said. While such impact probably doesn’t put a hole in the eye, it can create retinal damage or a hyphema, a blood pooling between the cornea and iris. That, Dr. Cooney said, can cause glaucoma and vision loss.