Choosing The Best Reading Glasses

Air Date:
Heard On The Larry Meiller Show

Larry Meiller learns whether there is a difference between off the shelf reading glasses and prescription reading glasses, and how to choose the one that’s right for your needs.

Featured in this Show

  • Prescription Reading Glasses Can Provide Better Results, Comfort, Optometrist Says

    Reading glasses may be readily available in drugstores and supermarkets, but those generic models might not always be the best choice given the advantages of prescription glasses, according to one optometrist.

    A need for reading glasses generally develops with age, said Jim La Luzerne, president of the largest manufacturer of prescription eyeglasses in the world and inductee into the Optical Hall of Fame. La Luzerne said that even though many people don’t need prescription glasses in their younger years, difficulty with near-range sight later in life “happens to nearly everybody.”

    “Around 40, you start to notice it,” said La Luzerne. “Around 50, you better have really long arms or some sort of a reading glasses system.”

    While generic reading glasses can be a big help, La Luzerne said that “there is a significant different between over-the-counter readers and prescription reading glasses.”

    For instance, prescription reading glasses are formulated as a result of an examination by an eye professional, and according to La Luzerne, they can take into account different needs for each eye individually. In addition, prescription glasses can address irregular formations of the eye, or astigmatisms.

    Besides working with a person’s individual needs, La Luzerne said that prescription reading glasses are calibrated for “reading distance.” That, he explained, is the average of 16 inches that most people hold reading materials away from their eyes.

    In contrast, over-the-counter reading glasses have the same magnification strength in both lenses — something that could potentially be an issue, given that “most people don’t have the same prescription in both eyes,” La Luzerne said.

    Similarly, the generic glasses aren’t able to account for astigmatisms.

    While La Luzerne is a proponent of prescription reading glasses, he did say that there is no harm in the generic types, whether as a backup or as a short-term solution.

    “The over-the-counter reading glasses aren’t going to do you any harm. They might not be the most comfortable. You might get a little fuzzy-eyed from them, but nothing permanent,” he said. “People should know that it’s a safe thing to do.”

    In terms of cost, La Luzerne said that prescription reading glasses will be significantly more than an over-the-counter model, but not nearly as much as a bifocal or progressive lens. Because they address close-proximity sight exclusively, the lenses are single-focus and therefore less expensive.

    La Luzerne said that getting an eye exam every two years — as is recommended — will tell if a stronger reading prescription is needed. In the meantime, he said that if someone finds that they are holding printed material farther than that average 16 inches, it might be time to get an updated prescription.

Episode Credits

  • Larry Meiller Host
  • Judith Siers-Poisson Producer
  • Jim La Luzerne Guest