Part 3 of 3

In our last section on high-tech glasses we explore electronic lenses and how glasses can help spot health problems early and improve the lives of blind people.

Helping With Partial Blindness

Oxford University researchers are developing glasses which could lead to blind people having a better quality of life and preventing accidents. The frames have 2 tiny cameras set into them which alert the wearers by flagging up potential obstacles and transmitting them to them lenses. The lenses act as screens, flagging up objects to the user that could get in their way. Although not available yet and costing over $1,000 a pair they are still in the early stages, but the developers are hoping within 2 years they will be widely available.

Electronic Lenses

Regular vari-focals have 2 different powers in the lenses, allowing a wearer to use them for both close items and objects in the distance. But the wearer has to look through either the top or bottom of the lens and adjust their vision. Scientists have now developed electronic lenses which know if you are reading or looking into the distance and automatically adjust the lens power. These state of the art glasses have microchips and a battery, with liquid crystals within the lenses. If a user changes where they are looking a tiny current passes through the lenses which change the shape of the liquid crystals and make them thicker or thinner. They currently retail at about 10 times the price of a regular vari-focal, we can't see them hitting your local optical store anytime soon.

Spotting Autism

Lack of eye contact has been linked with a number of neurological conditions. So researchers in the states have come up with a set of frames that track eye-gaze. The tiny cameras in the glasses track eye movements, researchers believe this will help identify developmental delays sooner. Early detection can lead to earlier treatment which is thought to be more effective.

Part 2/3

In part 2 we explore more tech advancements within the vision industry and how they can help us!

Vampire Specs

They sound like something that belong in a horror movie, but these specs have lenses that enhance the color of the blood vessels under the skin and are quite useful to doctors at least. They come in purple, green or pink lenses, the green ones detect the amount of blood under the skin, whilst the purple ones highlight the purple veins in the skin. The manufacturer claims the version with pink lenses can detect changes in the skin associated with changes in emotion. Not so useful as the purple and green lenses but supposedly they can be used by security in airports to detect if a passenger is acting suspicious.

Hearing Glasses?

Yes we did say it right!, glasses that can help you hear. Each of these frames come with 4 tiny microphones in each arm. They pick up sound from the direction that the wearer is looking in whilst reducing background noise. The sounds are then relayed to each ear through a tiny tube-like earphone on either side. Although hearing aids use the same principles, the frames have a slight advantage as they are pointed in the right direction. Many of the hearing-impaired volunteers that tested the device actually preferred it to their hearing aids. Although currently they cost more then $2,000, we hope to see these come down to something mere mortals can afford in the future.

Glasses That Allow You To Get High

No we are not talking about drugs, these specs are for those of you that suffer from vertigo. If you get dizzy when standing on a ladder, you will love these next frames. Many people experience dizzy spells when looking down from even small heights. This is thought to be caused by balance sensors in the inner-ear or the brain. Researchers have come up with a novel solution to this problem, glasses that have spots on the side of the lenses. It is thought that giving the wearer something to focus on in their peripheral vision will ease their dizziness.

British researchers teamed up with colleagues around the world to pinpoint "variations" in DNA that make people more susceptible to myopia, the most common sight problem.

The breakthrough could lead to treatment in the next decade with eye drops or tablets that halt the distorted growth of the eyeball which causes the condition.

Shortsightedness is a relatively new but growing phenomena and as urbanisation and intensive education levels increase it is reaching epidemic proportions in some parts of the world.

Around a third of people in Britain are short-sighted, but in the Far East it is an even bigger problem, possibly because use of technology at an early age is more prevalent there. In Japan, two thirds of teenagers are already myopic and in Singapore, 80 per cent of 18-year-old male army recruits are short sighted, compared with 25 per cent just 30 years ago.

While watching television, reading and staying indoors is obviously having an effect, researchers knew that there was also a strong hereditary or genetic element to whether you succumbed.

In a study involving thousands of people around the world, including 4,300 in Britain, they searched for genes associated with degrees of myopia.

They found a number of variations around the RASGRF1 gene, which is associated with eye growth, seemed to be strongly associated with myopia - either preventing it or protecting against it.

Researchers now hope to be able to identify how exactly they affect the growth of the eye and then develop treatments that produce the perfect mix of genes.

In this way they should be able to prevent the eyeball distorting and therefore maintain 20-20 vision in most of the population.

"It is not quite the end of glasses yet but clearly the hope is that we will be able to block the genetic pathways that causes shortsightedness," said Dr Christopher Hammond at King's College London, an eye surgeon who led the British research.

"It will probably take the form of a tablet or eye drops but it is going to be a challenge and at least 10 years before there is a treatment."

The findings, published in Nature Genetics, will not be relevent to age-related longsightedness as this is to do with the eye muscles ability to focus and not to do with distortion of the eye ball itself. Reading glasses will still be needed for a while.

Are we worried? Not really.....

They’re no longer hip or modern; they no longer match your prescription or your style. Perhaps they just don’t fit or you never use them anymore?

For a person living in a developing country, used eyeglasses can help put the world in focus. For some, maybe even for the very first time.

SeeInStyle.com have teamed up with socially aware lifestyle magazine RECOGNISE www.recognisemagazine.co.uk to help grow awareness of the Clearer Today program, aimed at sending 1,000 pairs of used glasses to the developing world.

A new arrival to the consumer magazine market, RECOGNISE offers a lifestyle publication driven by a desire to be an ambassador for environmental awareness and a promoter of ethical living. Every two months sees an eclectic mix of fashion, travel, gadgets, food and beauty for both men and women. Content is defined by a commitment to pinpointing companies, people and brands that are all dedicated to social awareness and responsibility. Readers will enjoy reading about some of the world’s most exciting developments. Each and every feature found within our magazine has earned its status as it demonstrates and clearly believes in the ethos of giving something back.

The goal of the Clearer Today program is to meet the demand for quality eyeglasses in developing nations, providing otherwise unobtainable prescription eyewear to those who need it most. All types of eyeglasses and sunglasses, prescription and non-prescription are acceptable for recycling.

If you have a pair of unwanted specs or sunglasses – drop us an email at clearertoday@seeinstyle.com and we will arrange collection of your old glasses from you at no cost.

Don’t throw away someone’s chance for a clearer today. Donate your used prescription eyeglasses and someone in the world gets to see again

Readers of RECOGNISE also receive a 15% discount with SeeInStyle.com by quoting the code "recognise" during the check out process.

A soldier blinded in battle has become the first member of the armed forces to test a special pair of prescription glasses which allow him to 'see' using his tongue.

Lance Corporal Craig Lundberg, who was blinded in a grenade attack in Basra, is testing prototype glasses which turn pictures into electrical impulses that are felt on the tongue. The different sensations mean he can distinguish between light and dark and negotiate his way around objects.

According to Craig, “It’s only a prototype, but the potential to change my life is massive. It has enabled me to pick up objects straight away, I can reach out and pick them up when before I would be fumbling around.”

Wow. When I first spotted this I thought this guy was going to be some kind of loon who really believed he could see with his tongue. Bit of a let down if I'm honest. On the bright side, what does this mean for the future of the sex toy?

With the sunny weather still in full swing it’s important to keep eye health in mind, especially if you are spending your days out in the sun. Here is a list of some of the most famous superheros and super villains that pull off the sunglasses look all the time.

10. Cyclops – The only superhero that can pull off those killer lenses

9. Daredevil – He may be blind, but the dude still kicks ass with those vintage shades

8. Hancock – My favorite drunk superhero

7. Corey Hart – The man that always wears sunglasses at night

6. Doctor Octopus – The smartest man with 6 arms

5. Luke Cage – Steel skin and John Lennon’s sunglasses; Power Man is a hero’s hero

4. Johnny Cage – Prince Goro, meet your maker

3. Mr. Freeze – Those sunglasses are in mint condition being locked in an airtight tube helmet

2. The Flash – The 3rd but not final flash, Bart Allen

1. Nite Owl II – Coolest. Goggles. Ever.