Understanding Vision

Better vision for seniors

Anyone who is over 40 usually needs a pair of glasses. Progressive addition lenses can restore 20/20 vision

27 January 2022

All of a sudden, you might have trouble pushing a thread through the eye of the needle or you may have to hold your newspaper far away from your face so that you can read it. These are the first signs of advanced age vision problems. It is a normal process and no cause for concern. After all, good glasses and progressive lenses are now available to ensure that you can enjoy eagle’s eye vision.

It begins somewhere between the age of 40 and 50: The lens and the ring muscle inside your eyes might lose elasticity. The eye is no longer able to automatically adjust and zoom in on different distances, a process enabled by what experts call accommodation. It makes the lens of the eye bend to adjust to the distances.

However, if this process does not work as nature intended, this causes problems with close-up vision. If the lens maintains a flat shape when looking at objects that are close-by, its refractory force is significantly impaired. Consequently, light beams that penetrate the eye from near-by are bundled behind the retina and deliver a blurred image.

Long-sighted people may encounter this problem much sooner. Hyperopic people have excellent long range vision, but do have problems seeing things that are close-up. The reason: The eyeball is too short and the incoming rays of light are not accurately depicted on the retina.

Vision over 40 (presbyopia)

Short-sighted people might actually see things in their immediate range of vision better without glasses than they do with them. Taking your glasses on and off constantly, though, can be quite annoying. Consequently, the best solution – regardless of whether you had normal vision before, or were already short or farsighted is a pair of customised glasses.

Those who had normal vision before will initially only need reading glasses. However, age driven vision problems do amplify as the years progress. Many will soon also need something to correct their medium range vision.
In such cases, glasses with progressive lenses are the perfect solution, as they accommodate the zones for different vision distances infinitely – without a separating ocular edge and with infinite transitions. The number one benefit of progressive lenses is that the eye can jump from one image to the next and zoom in sharply, regardless of whether an object is off in the distance or nearby.

Visual solutions for the workplace after 40

Today, special career glasses with expanded visual zones for medium range and close up distances are available for users who spend a lot of time working on computers. The special progressive addition lens is optimally aligned with the distance between user and screen. The quality level of the lenses is of particular importance for progressive glasses. If they do not meet high quality standards, getting used to these glasses can be extremely difficult.

Reading glasses provide a presbyopic wearer with clear close-up vision. Middle distance and long-range vision are blurred.

Bifocal lenses provide a presbyopic wearer with sharp near and far vision. Clear middle distance vision is not possible.

This office lens type provides clear vision from reading distance to a fixed M.I.D. of 200 cm.

This "indoor progressive" office lens type provides clear vision from reading distance up to a fixed M.I.D. of 400 cm.

What are bifocal and trifocal lenses?

Bifocal and trifocal lenses are the predecessors of progressive lenses. They are the ideal solution for those who do not like progressive lenses or have trouble using them. Some people still prefer them, however, these types of lenses provide just an alternative and require compromises, since the join in lens creates an image leap and these types of glasses cannot cover all vision ranges.