As you try on your best friend’s super weak reading glasses, you wonder, does wearing lower prescription glasses damage eyes?
You were born cursed with nearsightedness and farsightedness, and so your vision is as good as a bat’s (if you’re not already aware, bats are almost blind).
You have your own pair of Oakley glasses, but thought you’d try on your BFF’s lower prescription glasses to see if Ray-Ban eyeglasses frames look good on you.
Wearing your best friend’s glasses makes you feel like you’re 12 drinks deep, as you can barely see the time on the kitchen clock or the letters on the newspaper right in front of you. Your friend’s once-detailed face looks like melted ice cream, her nose indistinguishable from her upper lip.
“Girl, those glasses do not suit you” your brutally honest BFF exclaims (because that’s what BFF’s do right? They tell you the truth. Maybe you should tell her that her face looks like melted ice cream? Maybe not).
Before popping the eyeglasses off, you ponder for a bit.
What would it be like if you wore these glasses all the time? Could your vision improve? Or, can wearing lower prescription glasses damage your eyes forever?
Let’s explore this question a little further.
Can Wearing Lower Prescription Glasses Damage Eyes? It Depends on Your Age
Wearing lower prescription glasses typically won’t have any long-term effect on the health of your eyes. However, we should distinguish between the eyes of an adult and the eyes of a child or adolescent, the latter of which are still developing.
If a child or young adult is wearing lower prescription glasses, their vision and eye health could be compromised. Children are not emmetropic, meaning their vision is not ideal. A child’s vision develops progressively and so mild hyperopia is something that can correct itself over time. However, if vision problems in a child persist, booking them an appointment to see the optometrist is crucial as hyperopia can lead to learning difficulties, eye strain, dizziness, and headaches. Prolonged eye strain can cause accommodative esotropia which is when the eyes cross to try to make up for the refractive error. Or, it can lead to amblyopia, also known as “lazy eye”.
For adults, eye strain doesn’t do any damage to eyes – no matter if they’re nearsighted, farsighted, or if they are wearing a lower prescription than what they need. As an adult, your eyes ‘learn’ to correctly focus on different distances modify their visual performance and accommodate the particular situation. However, if this happens over a longer period of time, your eyes are overworked from eye strain and then noticeable symptoms occur.
What Symptoms Occur When You Wear Lower Prescription Glasses?
Wearing lower prescription eyeglasses can lead to different symptoms. Here’s a typical problem: you notice that your glasses don’t provide you with optimal vision. This doesn’t cause damage, but it certainly strains your eyes. And it means that your eyes have to work harder.
The possible consequences of eye strain are numerous and include headaches, neck pain, watery or burning eyes, dizziness or seeing double images. These uncomfortable symptoms happen when you wear lower prescription glasses because your eyes and brain “speak” to one another and wearing a lower prescription than what you require confuses the messages sent to your brain.
Your retina sees an image that is out of focus, blurry, and distorted as the correction isn’t appropriate for your eyes. Both your eyes and brain have to work harder, which causes eye strain and discomfort. The discomfort caused by wearing someone else’s prescription will ease soon after you remove the glasses.
Can Wearing Lower Prescription Glasses Damage Your Eyes Over a Long Period of Time?
Wearing lower prescription glasses for a long period of time can cause you to experience discomfort, but it will not cause damage to your eyes. However, one significant drawback of wearing lower prescription glasses for a long period of time is that you may not realize your full visual potential – you simply get used to this situation. Thus impaired visual performance is often only discovered by an objective source, i.e. when you’re applying for a drivers license or viewing the Snellen chart at the optometrist.
At iSight Optometry, you never have to worry about experiencing symptoms from wrong eye prescriptions or ill-fitting spectacles. Our eye care professionals are highly trained and use the latest technology to test your eyes and produce the best pair of glasses to help you see clearly throughout the day. Whether it’s for you, or your child, we are dedicated to taking care of you and your family’s eyes.
Experiencing symptoms from wearing lower prescription glasses? Book an appointment with one of our optometrists today!
FAQs
There isn't a risk of long-term eye damage in most adults with stabilized vision. But, you can still experience symptoms affecting vision and comfort. Wearing a prescription that is too weak or too strong can cause: Blurry vision.
Will low prescription glasses damage eyes? ›
Can you damage your eyes by wearing an incorrectly fitted pair of glasses for a longer period of time? No, absolutely not. There are also no drawbacks if your visual performance deteriorates over time and your glasses, which had been optimally fitted, no longer provide ideal correction.
Is it bad to wear lower prescription contacts? ›
Answer: Wearing the wrong prescription is very unlikely to cause any temporary or permanent damage to the eyes. It can, however, cause symptoms which are called asthenopia and include blurry vision, headache, nausea, eye pain, brow ache and others. These symptoms should resolve when you get your correct prescription.
Can you get used to with lower prescription glasses? ›
It can take a few days or weeks to adjust to new glasses. If you still cannot see well with your glasses after a few weeks, your prescription may be too weak or too strong. This happens sometimes, and it can cause headaches, eye strain, and fatigue. However, for adults, it is nothing to worry about in the long term.
Is it bad to use glasses that are too weak? ›
This results in tired eyes as the visual system has to work significantly harder to achieve a clear image. Overcorrection means the glasses are too strong for the wearer, while undercorrection means they are too weak. For many spectacle wearers, this can lead to eyestrain as well as headaches, neck pain and nausea.
How bad is a 1.50 eye prescription? ›
This prescription is for the left eye, and -1.50 means that your nearsightedness is measured at 1 and 1/2 diopters. It's considered a mild amount of nearsightedness. SPH indicates the adjustment for spherical power, with a prismatic correction of 0.5 Base Up.
Is minus 0.25 eyesight bad? ›
Myopia 0.25 is the smallest degree of myopia, usually does not affect too much to daily life, study and work. If you have myopia of only 0.25 degrees, you can do normal activities without wearing glasses at all.
How bad is a 3.50 eye prescription? ›
Before we jump into what each section of how to read an eye prescription means, as a general rule, the higher the numbers on your prescription, the worse your eyesight is and the stronger your prescription will be to provide the necessary correction. Mild: -0.50 to -3. Moderate: -3.25 to -5.00. High: -5.25 to -10.
Is 0.75 eyesight bad? ›
Most people have a mild prescription, between 0.5 to 0.75 D. They may not really notice it in their daily lives. People with a measurement of more than . 75 D may need contacts or eyeglasses to correct their vision to see clearly.
How to tell if a glasses prescription is too strong? ›
There are a few warning signs to look for if you think your glasses are too strong, including blurry vision, eye strain, headaches, dizziness and nausea, and problems with depth perception. If you notice any of these symptoms, you should visit your eye doctor for a comprehensive eye exam to update your prescription.
Fishbowl effect
This is when the images you see through your lenses seem to bend at the edges as if you were looking through a fishbowl at the world. Wearing your new glasses frequently will help you get used to them if you're having problems with the fishbowl effect or other things.
What is the fishbowl effect? ›
Eye strain: Your eyes need to work harder to focus when wearing new glasses, making them feel tired or strained. Fishbowl effect: Wearing new glasses can lead to a fishbowl effect where images look bent along their edges, making it feel like you're looking through a fishbowl.
What is the fishbowl effect on new glasses? ›
The “fishbowl” effect is when your vision appears to be “bent” around the edges while maintaining clear vision in the center. Typically this issue occurs due to the curvature of the lens itself and tends to be more pronounced with higher prescriptions or larger lenses.
Why can I suddenly see better without my glasses? ›
What Could Cause Sudden Vision Improvements? It's much more common for vision improvements to be caused by medical conditions than lifestyle changes. Conditions like diabetes, cataracts, or even the development of something called “second sight” could be what's causing your vision to suddenly be better.
Why is my vision worse after wearing glasses? ›
Wearing the wrong prescription CAN impact the eyes
Adapting to new glasses can take a few days or weeks. After a few weeks, if you still can't see clearly through your glasses or your vision is not comfortable, your prescription may be too weak or too strong.
How bad is a 1.75 eye prescription? ›
A -1.75 eyewear prescription essentially signifies that you need some additional power to see some objects that are further away. Specifically, we are talking about things like watching television or objects or people at a distance when you are driving.
How do I know if my glasses prescription is too low? ›
If you experience any of these symptoms for an extended period of time, after the adjustment period, your prescription may be incorrect:
- Extreme blurring of vision.
- Lack of focus.
- Poor vision when one eye is closed.
- Excessive eye strain.
- Headaches or dizziness.
- Vertigo or nausea, unrelated to a medical condition.
-1.25 power lens correction is relatively mild. A person who has -1.25 vision is likely to wear prescription eyeglasses. To improve their vision, many people with -1.25 vision may choose to wear only over-the-counter reader glasses.
What is considered a weak eye prescription? ›
-3.00 diopters or less is mild. -3.00 to -6.00 diopters is moderate. -6.00 to -9.00 diopters is severe. -9.00 diopters or more is extreme.
