Are High-Index Lenses Right For You?

19 October 2017
 Categories: , Blog


The stronger your prescription is for eyeglasses, the thicker the lenses will be. Unfortunately, this could cut down your choices when it comes time to fix a frame. Designer frames that are rimless or made with thin metal or plastic are out of the question. There is a possible solution to this problem though.

What Are High-Index Lenses?

The lenses in your eyeglasses are designed to bend the light that enters them. The action helps to position the light in the center of your retina so that you can see better. The more bending that is required, the thicker the lenses will be on your eyeglasses.

High-index lenses are designed to fix this problem. The lenses can still bend the light as needed, but the material that is used to create the lenses is thinner and lighter. Therefore, you can expand your selection of frames by opting for the high-index lenses.

If you choose glass high-index lenses, they will be heavier than the plastic, but still lighter than the conventional glass lenses. The high-index glass lenses tend to be thinner around the edges but wider towards the center of the lens. However, it is not noticeable by others.

Are There Drawbacks?

Although high-index lenses come with several advantages, including the ability to choose from more designer frame styles, there are a couple of disadvantages to consider.

For instance, the high-index lenses are more expensive than convention plastic and glass lenses. The high-index lenses require more processing and the expense often falls to the consumer. However, your vision insurance will likely cover a majority of the expense.

Another possible issue is that the Abbe number could be increased if you opt for high-index lenses. The number is a measurement that accounts for visual distortion that occurs. The more distortion there is, the likelier it is that problems, such as visible halos around objects, can occur.

Your eye doctor and optician will not recommend a high-index lens that will result in distortion. This could mean that your lenses might not be as thinned down as you want. However, they will be thinner than the more conventional lenses. There are other measurements that can be adjusted to get a thinner lens.

Talk to an eye doctor and optician, such as from Vision Eyeland Super Optical LLC, to learn about other ways you can get thinner lenses. You can also learn more about high-index lenses and get specific information about how they can impact you and your prescription. 


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