As we age, so too does our vision, particularly when it comes to seeing up close but these days glasses are like breath mints, you can get them everywhere.
They range in price from just a few dollars to around the $60 mark - but are cheap, over-the-counter glasses seeing us right?
Renata Watene is a Kaiāwhina, teaching fellow, at Auckland University and she says a visit to an optometrist can find more than your need for glasses.
“Glaucoma, macular degeneration, we can pick up a lot of cancers at the back of the eye - diabetes is a big one, high blood pressure changes,” she said.
So what about buying over-the-counter reading glasses?
“Over-the-counter reading glasses are perfectly fine as long as you’re getting the prescription you require,” Watene said.
“The most important thing is getting the right advice so you’re investing in the right strength of glasses.”
Putting some to the test, Watene says over-the-counter glasses can be “a little bit hit and miss”.
Two out of the eight pairs tested were found to be different to what their prescription advertised.
“Just realise that if you do get some of them over the counter - and this is a really rough estimate, you do have a one-in-four chance of them not being correct,” Watene said.
John Duffy from Consumer NZ says don’t expect too much from them.
“These products are absolutely fine if you use them as they are designed - simply for magnifying text… to help with reading – don’t use them as a replacement for what your optometrist prescribes,” Duffy said.
To keep your eye on the ball, Watene says eyes need to be tested every two years.
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