When is it time for reading glasses (or contacts)?

Changes in vision are, unfortunately, just a part of life. Everyone will experience some level of vision adjustment as they age. It happens during childhood, adolescence, and your early adulthood but then it typically levels out.  

That would be a wonderful place to leave things, but our eyes have other plans. Just like any other body part, they will eventually feel the effects of time. The upside is you’ll get to rock a sweet pair of readers (or a new contact lens prescription).  

Why do we need reading glasses as we age?  

Unfortunately, our eyes are not exempt from the natural process of aging. Your eye’s ability to focus is dependent on a small, soft lens behind your iris. This lens contracts when you need to focus on something small up close, like a restaurant menu or your phone’s screen, allowing you to make out finer details. Over time, as we age, that lens becomes rigid and can no longer contract as effectively which reduces your ability to focus.  

This process is known as presbyopia, and it typically begins to show up around age 40. There’re several factors which can speed up, or slow down, this process but most people will have some form of presbyopia by their 50th birthday. By the age of 65, your lens is usually as rigid as it will get and there shouldn’t be anymore dramatic changes in vision.   

What do I do about presbyopia?  

Fortunately, in 2022, you have several options to deal with presbyopia. Most people will just purchase a pair of readers at their local drug store. That is a totally fine option, but there are much better solutions nowadays.  

Over-the-counter reading glasses have some major issues like poor fit, inaccurate strengths, and their inability to address astigmatism. Plus, presbyopia happens slowly, but you’ll still need to be buying new reading glasses every couple of years.  

Instead, your eye doctor can help you get fitted for contacts or glasses that specifically match your prescription and address your presbyopia. You may be concerned about frequent prescription changes and having unusable contacts but we’ve got your back. You can always exchange or return your lenses with us thanks to our Gajillion Percent Promise. (We’ll even take back opened boxes and single lenses!)  

It’s really the best of both worlds and the easiest way to deal with presbyopia.