Nowadays, progressive lenses are winning tremendous popularity among those suffering vision problems. What are progressive lenses, you may wonder. What is the big deal which makes progressive lenses so much-sought-after? Many hold that it is worth the whole while to get informed with their merits. You will find out all the answers regarding them in the following passages.

What are progressive lenses
Progressive lenses, also referred to as progressive addition lenses (PAL), progressive power lenses or graduated prescription lenses, are such kind of lenses with corrective powers, characterized by a gradient of increasing lens power used in prescription eyeglasses. Usually, the gradient starts at the wearer’s distance prescription, at the top of the lens and reaches a maximum magnification power, or the full reading addition, at the bottom of the lens.

The advantages and disadvantages of progressive lenses
Glasses with progressive lenses have graduated degrees of magnification power, enabling the wearer to see clearly and at the same time correct vision without substituting for bifocal and trifocal lenses. By only tilting their head to sight through the appropriate part of the vertical progression, wearer can easily adjust the additional lens power required for clear vision at different viewing distances. Unlike bifocal or trifocal lenses which are manifest with demarcated zone, progressive lenses are able to provide seamless progression of many lenses power for all viewing distances. With such a phenomenal quality, we can be spared the trouble of vision discontinuities. That is to say, the smooth and seamless transition of lenses power capacitate you to change focus from distance to near and back again more comfortably, with no image jump. With a pair of eyeglasses made of progressive lenses, you can see objects in the far, intermediate, and near distance equally clearly. But nothing is too perfect while progressive lenses also have their drawbacks. They are prone to suffer from the distortion of vision image, due to the fact that the power progression may create regions of aberration away from the optic axis, thus yielding poor visual resolution. This may cause some kind of uneasiness when you try on such a pair of glasses for the first time. Put it the other way, you may see quite clearly straight ahead and up and down, but you may not see as clearly to the left and right.

Several points that deserve attention
If you wear these progressive glasses for the first time, a spell of time is needed to get used to the wearing of it. Because of the distortion caused by the gradient of lens power, you sometimes may feel blurred in the peripheral part of the lenses. That is perfectly normal. You will adjust yourself to it in a few days or more.

After getting used to wearing progressive glasses, you will find it is a great help to you, sparing you the trouble of choosing bifocal or even trifocal lenses for the sake of seeing clearly.

Many people over 40 find themselves having difficulty focusing at a close range. Therefore, it becomes extremely hard for them to see clearly small prints or near objects.

In the past, the most common solution was to wear reading glasses or bifocals. However, reading glasses can be troublesome since you have to put on different glasses for different purposes. As for bifocals, those visible lines are obvious telltale signs giving away the fact tat you have reached that “bifocal age”. Besides, bifocals, having only two lens powers, only provide clear vision of objects in the distance or up close. Everything in between is still blurred.

Progressive lens, also known as “no-line bifocals”, provide a better solution. Thanks o their multi lens powers, they enable the wearer to see clearly at all distances, from up close for reading to at arm’s length for computer use to across the room. Unlike bifocals or trifocals, which jump from one lens power to another, progressive lenses provide a smooth and flawless progression of lens powers, avoiding image jump, distortion and other effects that might cause discomfort or even nausea. Besides, they give you a more youthful look by eliminating those visible lines found on bifocal and trifocal lenses. Owning a pair of progressive glasses, you don’t need to carry two pairs of glasses or put up with those unsightly bifocals anymore.

It should be noted that a first time wearer may find a soft blur in his peripheral vision through the lower half of the lenses, to the right and left of the intermediate zones. Usually, this sensation will go away after one or two weeks. If not, please contact your optician for an evaluation.

In addition to the blur problem, a couple of things should be taken care of if a new wearer wants to get used to his glasses as soon as possible. Firstly, he should stop wearing his old glasses immediately and begin wearing new glasses non-stop throughout the day. Secondly, to look at an object, he should turn his head (instead of just eyes) toward it and move his head vertically until it comes into focus. And last but not the least, he should wear the glasses high on his nose bridge and as close to his face as possible.

The adaptation period lasts only a few hours for most people. However, for some, it may take one week or two.