How To Improve Night Vision While Driving?
How to improve night vision while driving one of the problems that most people face is a lack of vision while driving at night. This is especially true as people get older. The glare from headlights of vehicles coming from the other direction can be blinding.
Everyone knows that even a moment of blinding can be disastrous when you are driving on the highways. When you are going at high speed, you must have your vision on the road every moment.
Reasons For Poor Night Vision
While there are many reasons for poor night vision age is one of the main factors. Older people suffer from poor night vision while driving. There are many reasons for this.
One of the major problems is progressive cataracts. This is caused by the debris that is the result of dying cells. This builds up and slowly reduces our vision. The first signs are poor night vision.
People affected with this condition can see halos around lights and have blurry vision. This is a condition that is easily corrected by surgery.
Another reason for poor night vision is diabetics. The retina becomes damaged with high sugar. Poor night vision and taking a long time to adjust to brightness are the first signs of this condition called retinopathy. Consulting a doctor can help you in controlling your sugar and arresting the progression of this condition.
Your night vision can be bad even if you have had a very hard day. This is a common condition and makes it hard for you to concentrate on the road.
The difference between the light in the car and the light of oncoming cars can make the condition worse. It is always good to rest your eyes if you are going on a long night drive.
During old age, the pupils don’t dilate fast, which means that it will not allow much light to enter the eyes. If you want to relate to this condition, it is like driving at night wearing sunglasses.
The lens of an older person is less clear than a younger person. Moreover, it becomes different to see the difference between lights of different intensities.
What Happens In Night Driving?
Before we go on to see how we can improve our vision during night driving, you must know what happens during night driving. The glare from the headlights of oncoming vehicles is what makes our vision lessen during night driving.
These lights come from different heights as different vehicles have their headlights at different heights. So, there is no particular angle of sitting that can help you avoid this glare.
Another fact is that both we and the opposite vehicles are moving. This means that the light that as far away rapidly comes close to us and passes quickly. This makes it difficult for the eyes to adjust to the light so quickly.
The above factors, combined with aging, cause a reduction in vision during night driving.
The result of such vision loss is that you don’t see the markings on the road. You are unable to judge the speed and distances of your vehicle and other vehicles. You cannot see the signs on the road properly. This makes it difficult for you to drive faster. You are forced to drive slow at night, causing a delay for yourself and others.
Ways To Improve Your Vision During Night Driving
In our quest to find how to improve night vision while driving these few solutions to seem to be the best. You can do these and reduce your problems while driving at night. The first thing to do is to keep your windshields and headlights clean.
Dusty and dirty windshields may not affect you much while driving in the day. You may not even notice it. But it is one of the main things that cause glare at night. You must make sure to clean your windshields regularly. Your headlight covers should also be cleaned properly.
One thing that distracts most drivers when driving at night is the bright light from the dashboard panels. You must reduce the light of the panels when you drive at night. This will help you see the roads better.
If you are using GPS for navigation, you must ensure that you use the night mode. Your rearview mirrors must also be in the night settings if you have the facility.
It is a normal tendency for people to look at the headlights of oncoming vehicles. You must avoid this as much as possible. You can focus on the road markings or just look straight ahead.
You must develop the habit of looking away from the lights of the vehicles. This will help you to see better in darkness. It becomes very difficult to adjust to the dim light of the road after looking at the bright headlights.
Tips & Techniques To Safely Drive In The Dark
One of the things to do is to move your eyes here and there while driving. This will help you with seeing the darker areas on the road better. You can also try blinking your eyes more frequently. You can also try rubbing your eyes gently with the ball of your palm for about 5-10 seconds.
When you open your eyes, you may first see white, but later the vision in the dark will be better. Reducing your speed is a good thing to do if you are seeing less clearly at night. People who are wearing glasses for vision can use glasses with a special coating to reduce glare.
Using the more modern progressive lenses have also helped to improve night vision. These glasses have a wider corridor to let light in than the earlier versions. Getting your eyes checked regularly is a must as you age. You must also get your cataracts operated as soon as it has been diagnosed.
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