With the solar eclipse less than a week distant and St. Thomas and Elgin a prime location to enjoy totality, it is important to keep your sights on safety.
Dr. Phil Hooper of the Ivey Eye Institute at St. Joseph’s Health Care London tells myFM you need solar-viewing glasses or a safe, handheld solar viewer to safely experience the action.
Hooper cautions, even a brief, unprotected glance at the sun during this time can lead to irreversible eye damage and vision loss.
Next week’s solar eclipse is one of the most anticipated in decades because St. Thomas and Elgin county are in the path of totality.
However, Dr. Hooper cautions that a solar eclipse can be once-in-a-lifetime experience but don’t let it have lifelong consequences due to direct exposure to infra-red rays from the sun.
If you can’t find solar-viewing glasses, Dr. Hooper has a Plan B.
He cautions, even a quick, unprotected look at the eclipse can burn a crescent-shaped hole in the eye’s macular tissue before any symptoms start and which could prove permanent.
Do not look at the sun through a camera lens, telescope, binoculars or any other optical device while wearing eclipse glasses or using a handheld solar viewer, as the concentrated solar rays will burn through the filter and can cause serious eye injury.
Symptoms of solar retinopathy include blurry vision and/or vision loss in the center of your sight and/or eye pain.
If you are experiencing any symptoms that might indicate damage from viewing the solar eclipse, see an eye care professional right away.
Most symptoms improve on their own within a few months, but vision changes that persist six months after the injury may be permanent.
And, always supervise children using solar viewers.
