When it comes to eye safety, most people recognize the importance of wearing safety glasses when required by company policies or the nature of work. But few think about wearing eye protection while cleaning, cooking, doing yard work or working in the garage. And most all are shocked to learn that according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), half of all eye injuries occur when doing everyday chores at home!

According to the AAO, 90% of eye injuries are preventable by wearing the proper eye protection, but 78% of those injured fail to wear protective eyewear.

To remind everyone of the hazards in their own homes that could damage the precious gift of sight, Prevent Blindness America has declared September as Home Eye Safety Awareness Month. “All too often, when we are working around the house and doing chores that we have done a thousand times before without incident, we forget about the risks we take by not protecting our eyes,” said Hugh R. Parry, President and CEO of Prevent Blindness America. “But all it takes is one split-second accident that could damage your vision for a lifetime.”

Prevent Blindness America strongly supports the AAO and the American Society of Ocular Trauma (ASOT) in their recommendation that every household have at least one pair of American National Standards Institute (ANSI) approved eyewear. The eyewear should have the “Z-87” logo stamped on the frames and can be purchased inexpensively at hardware stores and home building centers.

Safety Tips

Approximately 40% of home eye injuries occur in the yard or garden as debris from lawn mowers or power trimmers can unexpectedly enter the eye at a high rate of speed. Prevent Blindness America offers these tips on how to protect your eyes while doing work in the yard:

• When mowing, wear safety glasses with side protection or goggles. Check your yard and remove debris before mowing.
• When using a weed whacker, wear safety glasses or goggles under a face shield.
• Wear goggles when working with power saws or trimmers.
• Turn off power tools when near an unprotected bystander, especially when young children approach. Bystanders and helpers need eye protection when around tools that are in use.
• Wear goggles to protect your eyes from fertilizers, pesticides, and other yard chemicals, including lime dust.
• Read and follow all product instructions. Obey warnings on yard chemicals and equipment.

When working indoors or outdoors, wear eye protection when using household chemicals, including bleach or other cleaners, as they cause 125,000 eye injuries every year! Also thoroughly wash hands before touching the eyes or face.

For more information on how to protect your eyes at home and eye protection recommendations, please visit http://www.preventblindness.org