Can cycling cause UV eye damage?

[vickster]

Don’t forget to wear sun cream in summer to protect skin from the nasty cancer causing UV too

 

[gbb]

My late father went blind in his late 50s and in the run up to total loss he frequented a good few eye specialist clinics. Bearing in mind this particular specialist may have been somewhat 'OTT' , his opinion was its a grave mistake for almost anyone not to wear eye protection against UV. Sunglasses, particually in the summer were an absolute neccessity in his opinion, not to do so was utterly reckless.
He may have been over zealous, maybe not...but equally he was an eye specialist.

 

[screenman]

It does abounce around, but asphalt is one of the least UV reflective surfaces that you can encounter when outdoors.

Concrete is pretty good though, we us e auv curing resin and even in the shade of a building on a very cloudy day it will set up in a minute or so. One of the reasons we see so many poor windscreen repairs is down to guys not using a uv shield when repairing as the resin sets up before it fills the damage.

 

[Chris S]

UV doesn't reflect of roads - it comes from that big orange thing in the sky.

It must be reflected from somewhere otherwise pedestrians would have 'cycle tans' as well.

 

[I like Skol]

It must be reflected from somewhere otherwise pedestrians would have 'cycle tans' as well.

Maybe it is something to do with cyclists exerting themselves outdoors so wearing less and getting more exposure? Many outdoors workers also get an unhealthy tan too.

 

[Chris S]

When I cycle my face gets tanned and it's facing the road, not the sun.

 

[cougie uk]

When I cycle my face gets tanned and it's facing the road, not the sun.

I think we need photos of this. The sun is definitely shining on your face.

 

[Chris S]

I think we need photos of this. The sun is definitely shining on your face.

This is a silhouette of a cyclist's body position. Their face is facing the road. It will receive UV light directly from the sun but not as much as somebody whose face is vertical. Why then do they tan more?

 

[I like Skol]

This is a silhouette of a cyclist's body position. Their face is facing the road. It will receive UV light from the sun but not as much as somebody whose face is vertical. Why then do they tan more?

View attachment 558076

He's going to run straight into the back of something if he doesn't look up some time soon!

 

[byegad]

I assumed the UV was being reflected from the road because it's shiny.

More like a wet road, they can reflect

 

[screenman]

Google indirect uv, it can bounce off most surfaces.

 

[ColinJ]

He's going to run straight into the back of something if he doesn't look up some time soon!

Get REAL, Skolly... NO cyclist would EVER make a stupid mistake like that...

Notice that they BOTH check the car for damage!

 

[I like Skol]

He didn't have a tan though, so just goes to show if you look down you don't get a tan from UV reflected back off the road surface. He did appear to have blood running down his cheeks from under his glasses!

 

[screenman]

He didn't have a tan though, so just goes to show if you look down you don't get a tan from UV reflected back off the road surface. He did appear to have blood running down his cheeks from under his glasses!

Uv can bounce back off of most surfaces including things like grass.

 

[Nebulous]

As a teenager I got excruciating headaches and was dosing myself with painkillers. Driving made it even worse, but I realised it was connected with the sun shining. I started wearing sunglasses regularly and always have a pair in the car in case the sun appears. I've rarely had a headache since, but have kept the sunglasses going just in case.

I have high hopes that my regular sunglass wearing will protect me from cataract in later years. I've done some work with opticians and have heard some horror stories about eye damage on bikes, so almost always wear eye protection there as well (not for short rides in town)