Bill Nye, the Vision Guy? Here’s a treat for you Bill Nye fans – VSP Vision Care has created a series of webisodes starring the original Science Guy. The goal? To educate Americans on eye health and debunk common myths.

Dangerous Lenses: Cosmetic contact lenses can seem an easy and inexpensive way to change your eye color or add fun effects for costume parties; however, be careful! It is illegal for anyone but eye-care professionals to sell contact lenses, even the ones that do not have a prescription. As this article explains, the consequences of buying from vendors could be unpleasant.

Joke or Reality? Speaking of contact lenses, the web has recently been buzzing with news of a new contact lens spray – that’s right, a substance that you spray into your eye that can change the color or even correct your vision. Is it a joke or a real invention? What do you think?

Is That Eye Itching Because of Allergies? It’s hard sometimes to know if your eyes are just irritated or if you’re suffering from allergies. Luckily, WebMD has this useful slide show called “Taking on Allergies” that shows you what eye allergies look like and how to deal with them.

Image Credit: BillNye.com

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For the young and trendy, finding the right pair of reading glasses can be a huge struggle. You might not quite need bifocals and might not be ready for the small reading glasses on a chain around your neck [librarian] look.

However, our new glasses, The Studio, are perfect for the reading glasses shopper looking for a trendy pair. Their round and detailed frames are sure to make you stand out in a crowd and you’ll never feel unfashionable when you slip on your glasses to read the small print on that menu while that cute waiter is watching.

They come in four different colors:

red and tortoise

green and tortoise

tortoise

black and tortoise

The tortoise and black and tortoise are my favorite simply because they would be easy to match, but if you are looking for a splash of color, then the green and tortoise or red and tortoise would be great. And at just $12.71 a pair, you could afford to get them in a few different colors! Let me know what you think about these new glasses.

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What are you waiting for?! Get to reading clearly!

Need some new, stylish reading glasses? Just Another New Blog has a $25 gift card for you to get the exact pair you want. Ends 5/29.

Youthful Tips is also giving away a pair of stunning reading specs. Ends 5/29.

Good luck!

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Phakic Intraocular Lenses? What? Don’t worry, I’ll explain. For those of us who are interested in laser eye surgery but are perhaps a little nervous about the risks, the new technology described in this article might be the solution. While IOLs and laser eye surgery equally improve vision, IOLS could be a safer alternative; instead of having lasers remove parts of your cornea, you would have a synthetic lens inserted in front of your natural lens.

The Negative Effects of 3D: We have talked about the possible side effects of 3D technology before (here and here), and the general consensus seems to be that the vision problems created by 3D television and games will be minimal. Nevertheless, Nintendo isn’t taking any chances that 3D might have a negative effect on children’s eyesight; the latest news is that their newest game console, the Nintendo 3DS, will have a convenient on/off switch allowing gamers to switch from 3D to 2D.

Books for the Blind: Did you know only 5 percent of published books are available in a form accessible to the visually impaired? Thanks to the nonprofit organization The Internet Archive, that may change. A new initiative to scan and convert thousands of books into a form that can be read by the devices blind people use to read will more than double the number of books currently available.

Computer Screening for Eye Problems: According to this article, approximately 23 million Americans have diabetes, and nearly half of that number neglect yearly eye exams, despite the fact that diabetes leads to an increased risk of blindness. Now, however, computer programs can screen the eyes of diabetes patients to determine if they really need to see an eye doctor. The author of the study rejects the idea, but doesn’t it make you wonder if someday you will go visit your computer for an eye exam instead of your optometrist? Ah, technology.

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Reading glasses can be a lifesaver – anybody who has ever had to strain to read small print can tell you that. But there’s one problem with the typical pair of magnifying lenses: you can’t wear them all the time. Ever have to switch back and forth from readers to sunglasses when you’re outside, having difficulty seeing because of the glare of the sun? Ever have to grab your reading glasses to see a map while driving, only to find you can no longer see the road?  Besides being unsafe, that’s a hassle that can leave you frustrated and annoyed. Don’t worry – I have a solution for you:

Let me introduce you to the new Owen Bifocal Driving Readers. These sporty frames are perfect for driving – the top part of the lens is a regular sunglass lens, allowing you to see far away while protecting your eyes at the same time, and the bottom is magnified for reading. Sitting out in the stands at a baseball game, struggling to read the program? The Owens have you covered with a small reading glasses portion of the lens that is there if you need it, but unobtrusive when you don’t.

What’s best is that you can’t even tell these are reading glasses – with the semi-rimless, wrap-around style and amber lenses, they just look like a cool pair of sunglasses, plain and simple. I like the black frames best, but there’s also tortoise and a very sleek red. With a pricetag of only $16.11, the Owens definitely give you your money’s worth and more.

Not sure you like this style but love the idea of bifocal reading sunglasses? Check out our other options here, and let us know what you think!

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