Over one million people leave the UK every year to go skiing and snowboarding, adrenalin raising pursuits which come with a modest risk of injury. In recent years, there has been a growing movement encouraging people to wear helmets when they hit the slopes, to protect against the risk of head injury, while the need the specialist insurance should accident occur is now well known. Anyone who needs to wear prescription glasses may also think of getting a hold of some disposable contact lenses, to replace the specs and remove the possibility of eye damage from broken glass should an accident or fall occur. While there are now alternatives to switching to contact lenses, in the form of special shatter proof prescription ski glasses and goggles, there is another potential hazard that still catches many people out every year: UV radiation.
Overexposure to the high levels of UVA and UVB radiation that are commonly experienced on the slopes can lead to the condition known as snow blindness
. While there are several different types of contact lenses that can provide a degree of UV protection, the strength of the rays you will often encounter at altitude means that you should not rely on this filtering alone. You must get a hold of dedicated skiing sunglasses or goggles that provide full UV protection, and if opting for sunglasses make sure that they are close fitting and wrap right around the side of the face.
It is not just the fact that that you are closer to the sun when skiing and snowboarding that increases the level of harmful UV rays being directed at the face and eyes, although this is a factor – with every thousand feet increase in altitude, the average intensity of UV radiation goes up by 5%. To compound this problem, the white surface of snow and ice can reflect up to 85% of the UV radiation coming from the sun back towards the face. While this effect is quite noticeable on a bright sunny day, many people are caught out when the weather is overcast – UV levels can still be high, even when the light seems ‘flat’.
Niphablepsia is the technical term for snow blindness, and this condition can encompass several types of damage to the eye. Most often, photokeratitis – which is basically sunburn to the cornea and conjunctiva – results from overexposure to UV radiation. More severe cases of snow blindness can result in solar retinopathy, which is (a usually temporary) damage to the retina, at the back of the eye. Redness and watering eyes are common symptoms of mild snow blindness, but a temporary loss of vision and significant pain is not uncommon. All in all, Niphablepsia can cause more problems than the average fall on the slopes, and is something best avoided!
