# Are you wearing eyeglasses and/or contact lenses as you're reading this? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 11, 2020, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425 "2020-06-11T01:58:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![scarface54345](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@scarface54345](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scarface54345)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/1 "2020-06-11T01:58:05Z")
Just wondering how much of the population wears some kind of vision correction. ---
**Author:** ![MichaelEmouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/michaelemouse/32/101_2.png) [@MichaelEmouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelEmouse)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/2 "2020-06-11T02:02:35Z")
I’m expecting this board is higher than average. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/3 "2020-06-11T02:13:29Z")
I’m wearing non-prescription reading glasses, which is pretty common for people over the age of 40, even those who didn’t need vision correction when they were younger. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/4 "2020-06-11T02:40:12Z")
Yes, eyeglasses. Contacts aren’t an option for me. Looking forward to cataracts so I can get corrective lenses implanted. ---
**Author:** ![a6ka97](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c2a13f/32.png) [@a6ka97](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a6ka97)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/5 "2020-06-11T02:42:02Z")
I am blind in one eye and can’t see out of the other without my glasses. I laugh on the inside when I get my hair cut as I am legally blind without my glasses and they ask " how does it look?" when it is just a huge blur to me. I just say “fine”. ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/6 "2020-06-11T02:42:59Z")
> [@scarface54345](#): > > Just wondering how much of the population wears some kind of vision correction. How much of _what_ population? And as I’m sure you must know, this “poll” can not and will not tell you the answer. ---
**Author:** ![Esprise\_Me](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprise_me/32/2947_2.png) [@Esprise\_Me](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprise_Me)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/7 "2020-06-11T02:57:48Z")
> **[Study Finds Most Americans Have Good Vision, But 14 Million Are Visually...](https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/study-finds-most-americans-have-good-vision-14-million-are-visually-impaired)** > > Most People Who Are Visually Impaired Could See Better If They Had the Proper Eyeglasses or Contact Lenses. I’m honestly surprised the percentage of people who need glasses or contacts is so low. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/8 "2020-06-11T02:58:50Z")
Yes, my prescription reading glasses. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/9 "2020-06-11T03:16:19Z")
no, but I should be … in a rage moment I threw my oft broken glasses and this time they couldn’t be fixed … so I gotta get a new ID so I can get them and my teeth fixed … Reason for the id is I’m on a state/fed managed care thing (healthnet in CA) and you gotta have a id for identity verification ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/10 "2020-06-11T03:27:58Z")
Yes, but they are a much milder prescription after the cataract surgery. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/11 "2020-06-11T03:29:42Z")
My eyes are bionic! I had cataracts at a much younger age than usual, so had IOC (intra-ocular lens replacement) surgery in my 50s. Now I have excellent vision with no glasses or contacts - after a lifetime of Coke-bottle glasses and heavy reliance on contact lenses, it has been fantastic. Better yet, I have mono vision lenses, meaning one eye is set for reading, one for distance vision, so I don’t even need reading glasses and never will. I’ve heard that a lot of doctors are skeptical of mono vision and refuse to implant IOC lenses that way, but for me it has been a godsend. The only weird part is that I do have an artificial-looking gleam in my eye when the light reflects just so. But given the benefits, I don’t mind looking vaguely cyborg-like from time to time. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/12 "2020-06-11T03:43:22Z")
I no longer needed glasses for mid-range vision after cataract surgery. But I still need bi-focals for in-hand reading and distance. ---
**Author:** ![Ashtura](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ashtura/32/2963_2.png) [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/13 "2020-06-11T03:47:31Z")
Wearing 1.00 readers. For my phone. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/14 "2020-06-11T04:44:17Z")
Bad vision. Glasses or contacts or I’ll walk off the edge of the world. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/15 "2020-06-11T04:48:38Z")
Since I was six. Should have been sooner; but when I was six, it was unusual for children to wear glasses, and nobody checked before then. I could see well enough to read and not to bang into things, and had of course no idea that my vision wasn’t normal. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/16 "2020-06-11T05:07:05Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Bad vision. Glasses or contacts or I’ll walk off the edge of the world. Last time I got a new prescription, I spent the next few days walking into walls. I didn’t have the chance to get to the edge of the world. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/17 "2020-06-11T06:00:20Z")
I had LASIK over 15 years ago (2003 I think it was) and though age is starting to catch up with it, I’m still good for now. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/18 "2020-06-11T06:49:49Z")
No; I got lasered several years ago. Without that I would need _distance_ glasses to read this. My focus range extended to about 8 inches. I’m 42 now and my vision is still good enough that I can see individual pixels on my screen at ~24". I don’t expect that to last forever. ---
**Author:** ![Mallard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Mallard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mallard)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/19 "2020-06-11T08:04:59Z")
I’ve had prescription glasses since age 15 (1967) ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425/20 "2020-06-11T09:19:18Z")
I wear glasses to watch TV and to read signs at a distance. I can get around without them. I don’t drive, so they’re not necessary, but they’re still nice to wear to make my vision a little sharper. At 63, I’m lucky enough not to need glasses when I read. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-wearing-eyeglasses-and-or-contact-lenses-as-youre-reading-this/855425.md?page=2)