this is an interesting (or at least relevant) addendum to lauren's post that i came across last week….looks like most sunglasses should do the job–cheap or expensive! http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/07/19/early…

theworkinggirlesq.blogspot.com

I wonder if the fancy ones just don't advertise their UV protection? At the store that I work at, I always rip off the UV 400 sticker because it looks tacky.

The tint of the lens is unrelated to UV protection – clear lenses can provide 100% UV protection. Sometimes lenses are made with a lighter tint so they are better for urban use and safer for driving… but if they are super-light, then it's just for fashion. The frame style could also be blamed for your squinting. If the temples are really narrow or the front is small, light may be reaching your eyes from the sides.

Eye protection is about more than UV. Some $5 sunglasses may have 100% UV, but the lenses will most likely have poor optical quality. Cheap lenses often have distortions and imperfections that can cause blurry vision and eye strain (definitely not good for driving). Higher-end lenses are manufactured under strict optical tolerances. $500 is not necessary, but $5 is risky… best to find something in between.

Proper UV protection not only prevents or reduces squinting but it helps protect against cataracts. Ray-Bans are one of the few brands recommended by opthalmologists. I remember seeing an episode of Oprah which featured the CEO of the company which manufactures a hug range of top-end designer labels. All were made in the same factories. I'm not sure about their UV rating, but you are paying a premium for the brand image and style rather than quality.

I don't know anything about sunglasses outside of what Sunglass Hut stocks but (just about) everything in that store provides 100% UV protection, sticker or not (with the exception of photochromic lenses….don't worry about it.) so Barbara is completely right. however, a lot of the sunglasses you find for ~$250-300 are polarized (best examples: Maui Jim, Revo, Oakley, etc) which makes a difference in that it eliminates 99.9% of glare, making them better for almost any situation. Pretty much every line carries a few frames with polarized lenses (including D&G, Versace, Prada, etc) and there is a HUGE difference between the polarization in those glasses versus the ones that say they are polarized in Walgreens. Generally though, I've found, all the $500 frames don't have polarized lenses so you're really just paying for the brand name (which is okay if you like that). Just two cents from someone who sells these things :)