Summer is here, and that means fun in the sun with friends and family. However, the perfect sporting weather does have its downsides—the increase in opportunities to play lively, rambunctious team sports also lead to more chances of eye injuries, especially if you’re not taking proper care. In fact, the median percentage of eye injuries that occur during racket sports when you don’t wear protective eyewear is 93%. Your eyes are vulnerable, so it’s best to take care of them if you want to maximise your enjoyment throughout the season.

Here’s how to protect your eyes when playing sports this summer.

Get your eyes checked

With summer usually coinciding with some breaks off work, this might be an excellent time to take your annual eye examination. This will help you identify if you’re developing eye diseases like cataracts or glaucoma, which don’t show symptoms until the conditions have progressed. You’ll also be able to update your eye prescription and ensure your sight is bright and clear for your games, decreasing your risk of injury. If you’re serious about your athletic commitments, you might also want to try sports vision testing. This test delves deeper than a routine eye exam to evaluate sports-specific visual skills such as eye tracking, eye-hand-body coordination, peripheral vision, depth perception, and visual reaction time. You usually arrange this with a visual treatment centre and its specialists rather than a regular optometrist. With a completed sports vision profile, you can formulate a training programme that hones your weaker visual skills while making use of your eyes’ particular strengths. Either way, getting your eyes checked is a vital foundation for sports eye safety.

Wear protective eye gear

In sports, protective eyewear is crucial: they prevent anything from physically hitting your eye while also protecting them from conditions like a corneal sunburn that you can get from prolonged exposure to the sun. Start with a pair of sunglasses, as they’re specifically designed to protect your eyes and enhance your vision in the sport of your choice. This is exemplified by the sunglasses from activewear brand Oakley. The iconic Sutro and Hydra lines have unique frames and lenses that were created to provide the optimal fit and visual clarity required for cycling and surfing. Aside from sunglasses, consider wearing a visor for sports like tennis. Worn by seasoned professionals like Serena Williams, visors provide additional protection from physical eye injury and sun damage while offering improved vision—and a touch more style to any look. In fact, visors have recently become a fashion icon with Couture and Cruise releasing designer iterations. For your needs, though, you can find regular visors at SportsDirect. Wear the eye protection you need to keep your eyes safe.

Nourish your eyes

As we outline in our article about harmful eye habits, people tend to forget eating a nutrient-rich diet is part of maintaining peak eye performance for your games. You’ll often find these nutrients, including zinc and omega-3 fatty acids, in fresh fruit and vegetables—and you can take advantage of the summer by buying local in-season products such as carrots, strawberries, and rhubarb. These healthful foods will also give you the energy and robustness needed to play the most active sports. Feed your eyes what they require to thrive in sports.

Your eyes are a vital factor in your enjoyment of sports. Optimise your games’ fun this summer season and follow the above strategies to care for your eyes.