Kids’ Optical
At Lesnick Optical we have a large selection of children’s eyeglass frames to choose from! But how do you figure out which ones your child is willing to wear and will last longer than the ride home?
To begin with, most children who need eyeglasses are either nearsighted or farsighted. Depending on the degree of visual correction necessary, our doctors will prescribe glasses for full – or part-time wear. Some kids will be instructed to take their glasses off for schoolwork, while others need to have them on every waking moment.
Sometimes the doctor will make specific recommendations about suitable eyeglass frames, but often that decision is left up to the parents, the child and our frame and lens specialist who will help fit the glasses. Here are 10 items to consider to make your trip to Lesnick Optical enjoyable, and to ensure that you get children’s glasses that will last a long time:
1. Lens Thickness
The prescription is always the primary consideration in choosing glasses. Before you start looking for the frames, we will have you discuss our doctors recommendations with our lens and frame specialists. If the prescription calls for strong lenses that are likely to be thick, it is important to keep the frames as small as possible in order to eliminate any distortion in the lenses. The specialist can give you a good idea of how thick the lenses will be and can recommend suitable frames to mask some of the thickness, as well as ways to make thick lenses appear thinner.
2. Fashion Forward
Whether they are full- or part-time eyeglass wearers, most kids get at least a little teasing about their specs, especially the first time they wear them. One way to help make your child more comfortable with wearing glasses is to allow her to choose her own frames. Your kid won’t want to get anything “uncool,” yet you don’t want her wearing something you find objectionable. However, keep in mind that the real object is to get him/her to wear the glasses.
3.Look for soft bridge pads, comfy nose pads and sturdy spring hinges Our lens and frame specialist can tell you which frames are popular and can point you to the classic styles.
4. The Right Temple Style
Temples that wrap all the way around the back of the ear are helpful in making sure that the glasses don’t slide down or drop off a child’s face completely. These wraparound temples, called “cable temples,” are generally available on metal frames and are especially helpful to keep glasses in place on toddlers. These pretty frames with cable temples are great for an active child or a very young one who tends to tug at her glasses.
Cable temples are not a good choice for part-time eyeglass wearers, however, as they are a bit more awkward to put on and take off. For glasses that go on and off frequently, it is better to have regular, or “skull,” temples that go straight back and then curve gently around the back of the ear.
5. Lens Material
Once you and your child agree on frames that you both like, the next consideration is the lenses. Children’s lenses should be made of polycarbonate, because it is the most impact-resistant material around. (It is actually the same plastic that bullet-proof glass is made of!) In addition to being the safest material, it is also lighter in weight than regular plastic lenses, a nice advantage for strong prescriptions. Polycarbonate has built-in protection against potentially damaging ultraviolet (UV) rays, and the lenses are scratch-resistant coated by the manufacturer or fabrication lab. The price for polycarbonate lenses is generally comparable to, if not less than, the cost for regular plastic lenses with UV and scratch-resistant coatings. And with polycarbonate, kids get that extra margin of safety to protect their eyes.
The least desirable material for your child’s lenses is glass. Although it must be treated for safety, glass still shatters when it breaks, and broken glass — even safety glass — is a hazard to the eye. Glass lenses are also a little heavier, which makes them less comfortable to wear.
