Glasses for distance vision can be a crucial visual aid if you struggle to see things far away. For activities such as driving, glasses for distance vision can be a legal requirement. If you think your vision has changed and you can no longer see things clearly in the distance, you should visit your optometrist who can test your vision and dispense the right lenses to correct your vision.
Glasses for far vision can be a helpful tool in many different environments, including at home, school and work. You might need glasses to correct your distance vision if you suffer from a condition called myopia, otherwise known as short-sightedness. It affects around 1 in 3 people in the UK and can start from a young age.
What is myopia?
Myopia is often the precursor to needing glasses for distance vision. It is a common eye condition that is caused by a misshapen lens, cornea or eyeball. This has an effect on how light focuses on the retina, which results in distant objects appearing blurry.
If you have myopia, the light won’t refract on the correct spot in the eye that allows us to see clearly. This tends to be due to the eye growing slightly too long, so the light focuses just in front of the retina instead of on it.
Myopia can also run in the family. If either or both parents have myopia, you are more likely to develop it and may need glasses for distance vision.
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Do I need glasses for distance vision?
If you struggle to see things at a distance, you will likely need to wear glasses to correct your vision. Symptoms might include sitting closer to the TV, headaches, eye strain or rubbing your eyes more than usual.
If you are over 40 and currently wear glasses for distance vision, you might need to update your lenses at some point to cater for presbyopia. This is an age-related condition whereby your close-up vision can begin to deteriorate. When this happens, you can invest in varifocal lenses so that you can see far away, up close and everything in between.
One such instance where glasses for distance vision is very important, as previously mentioned, is driving. If your vision doesn’t meet the standards of vision for driving, you must wear glasses every time you drive. You can be prosecuted if you don’t. The standards of vision include being able to read a car number plate from 20 metres, with glasses if necessary. Having a visual acuity of at least 0.5 decimal (6/12 measured on a Snellen chart and have an adequate field of vision is also required and your optician will test this and inform you whether glasses for distance vision are needed to correct these requirements for driving.
What glasses should I wear for distance?
If your optometrist has recommended that you wear glasses for myopia, you will need single vision lenses. This means the lens has one dioptric power throughout, optimised for distance in this case.
Eyezen lenses are enhanced single vision lenses, designed to prevent and reduce eye strain, particularly when working with digital devices. Perfectly tailored to your modern lifestyle, Eyezen glasses for short-sightedness can provide high-resolution vision.
If you have recently developed presbyopia, you will likely benefit more from wearing varifocal glasses to correct your short-sightedness and age-related long-sightedness. This will allow you to see near, far and in between. Varilux lenses are easy to wear varifocals, offering true vision and smooth adjustments between vision zones. There is a range of Varilux varifocal lenses optimised for your needs all of which can correct your distance vision requirements.