Nearly everyone enjoys participating in sporting competitions, but it’s vital to keep eye safety in mind when you do. Accidents that damage the eyes are far more likely when engaging in sport, and it’s a situation where a single “oops” could potentially leave someone blind.
You should use eye safety goggles whenever engaging in virtually any sporting activity. However, these are the sports that tend to lead to the most eye-related accidents.
Informed Eye Safety: Sports With The Highest Chances Of Eye Injury
Generally speaking, sporting events are broken up into three categories, depending on the risk they present to the eyes:
Low-Risk Sports
Generally, the only sports that are considered low-risk are those which A) are performed without physical contact between people, and B) do not involve sticks or flying objects of any sort.
Most track-and-field and gymnastics events fall into this category, as do most non-vehicular races. Swimming presents a special problem here. While ostensibly quite safe, unclean water can quickly cause destructive eye diseases.
High-Risk Sports
If it involves bodily contact with protective gear, sticks, or flying objects, it’s considered a high-risk sport. Baseball, basketball, hockey, football, lacrosse, and most other team sports would fall into this category.
The importance of eye guards in these sports cannot be overstated. Baseballs and hockey pucks can exceed speeds of 100MPH. A direct hit on an eyeball could destroy it, or even shatter the skull’s eye socket.
Very-High-Risk Sports
Martial arts and other fighting disciplines, especially those that discourage eyewear in the ring, are a huge risk to the eyes. The risk is doubled since concussions and other head trauma can also damage eyesight at the brain.
There’s simply no mitigating the risk here. If someone is involved in physical fighting, or even “fake” pro wrestling, their chances of vision problems are vastly increased. The dangers will be ever-present.
Always Protect Your Eyes When Playing Sports!
Remember: Most physical damage to your eyes can never be fully repaired. Prevention is often the only medicine when it comes to maintaining proper eye care.
