Workplace glasses, varifocals, reading glasses and more.

How to find the perfect glasses for your needs

Around 2.2 million Germans work in an office or secretarial role. Most of them work at a computer screen. And for several hours a day. Perhaps you do too?

The problem: working at a computer can put a lot of strain on your eyes. You may be familiar with the symptoms. Your eyes burn, water - or simply don't want to see so well. Phenomena that are normal when focusing on a screen for a long time. But normal is not necessarily good.

Spectra of different light sources

It gets even worse if you not only work a lot on the PC. You also have short or long-sightedness. Then there are several horrors to combat. Dry eyes and blurred vision. Plus: the blue light from the screen.

Fortunately, there are glasses that can solve these problems: work glasses, varifocals, reading glasses and blue blocker glasses.

In this article, you can find out what the individual glasses can do and which glasses are best for you in the workplace.

Difference between workplace glasses & varifocals

Do you have poor near and far vision? Then you're probably wearing varifocals. But did you know that there are also workplace glasses that are specially designed for your requirements in the office?

In contrast to varifocals, which are made for near and far vision, the distance range of work glasses is tailored to your individual working distance - usually shorter distances of between 50 and 70 centimetres. This is the distance you usually have to your keyboard and screen.

But how do the workplace glasses work?

The lenses of the work glasses have an extra large central viewing zone. This is essential for your work at the screen. The lower part of the lens is designed for a slightly shorter distance to the keyboard. The upper part, on the other hand, is for seeing into the distance.

This has a huge advantage for you: you can always see perfectly when switching between your screen, documents, keyboard and colleagues.

The 3 visual zones of screen glasses

What does that mean for you?

If you have problems with near and distance vision, you need varifocals. If you also work on a PC a lot, you should also buy a pair of work glasses.

Good to know: PC glasses, workstation glasses, computer workstation glasses and screen glasses are the same thing.

Do I have to pay for my workplace glasses myself?

VDU glasses include prescription lenses. Employers have had to cover the cost of these glasses since 2008. This applies if you need them to see clearly at work and the majority of your work involves working at a PC or monitor.

However, the costs can only be covered proportionally if you also wear the glasses privately. Or if you want special additional equipment.

All of this is precisely regulated in the Ordinance on Occupational Health Care.

Ordinance on preventive occupational health care

The Ordinance on Occupational Health Care (ArbMedVV) is a legal basis in Germany designed to protect the health of employees in the workplace. The ordinance specifies which occupational health care measures must be taken in certain occupational situations.

The ArbMedVV stipulates that an assessment of the risk at the workplace must be carried out. Not only the current conditions, but also future developments must be taken into account. Occupational health screening is intended to have a preventative effect and identify potential health risks at an early stage.

So what is the ArbMedVV supposed to do?

It is intended to improve working conditions, minimize potential health hazards and maintain the health of employees in the long term. Employers are required to carefully implement the provisions of the ArbMedVV in order to ensure a safe and healthy workplace.

(1) The employer must offer employees preventive care in accordance with the Annex. The offer of preventive care must be made before the commencement of employment and subsequently at regular intervals. The refusal of an offer does not release the employer from the obligation to continue to offer regular preventive care.

This preventive care, which is regulated in the Ordinance on Occupational Health Care (ArbMedVV) Section 5, also includes an appropriate examination of the eyes and eyesight.

If it turns out that the employee needs a special visual aid for working at a computer screen, this must be provided by the employer (Annex Part 4 ArbMedVV).

Another category of glasses: reading glasses

So far, you have learned what distinguishes varifocal glasses from prescription glasses. The biggest difference: the lenses of prescription glasses are divided into three visual zones. And they have an extra large central viewing zone for the screen.

Reading glasses also have a large near vision zone. However, they are designed for a short distance of around 30 to 40 cm - i.e. not for a VDU workstation. Instead, they are designed for the distance your eyes usually have to a book when reading. These glasses are also well suited for all activities where you need a close-up view. For example, when knitting. Reading glasses, on the other hand, are not suitable for working at a computer screen.

Even varifocals are no substitute for reading glasses. The progressive lens has two large vision zones for near and far vision. The area in the middle, which is perfect for screen distance, is too narrow. You have to hit it exactly with your eyes to be able to see clearly.

In addition, varifocals are not suitable for the rapid and numerous changes of gaze between monitor, keyboard and documents. Only computer glasses can do that.

Computer workstation glasses plus blue light filter

Blueblocker glasses with blue light filter

If you are short-sighted or both short-sighted and long-sighted, computer glasses are your first choice in the office. You know that now.

Why is that?

The computer workstation glasses enable relaxed, sharp vision on the screen - without you having to adjust your posture. The glasses are tailored precisely to your workplace situation.

However, good screen glasses not only ensure that you can see clearly in every situation. Ideally, they can also help protect your eyes from the strong blue-violet radiation of the monitor.

How does it work? With an integrated blue light filter.

Opticians often offer the integration of such a filter into the glasses. However, transparent lenses will not be enough to effectively protect your eyes from blue light. These filter a maximum of 30% of blue light. In our opinion, it is also not advisable to filter part or all of the spectrum at all times. Find out more in our article"Can I wear my blue blocker glasses all day long?"

One thing is certain: Too much blue light in the evening can disrupt your sleep rhythm. Blue light filters that block 100% blue light can support restful sleep and optimal regeneration. They can also be useful when working on a PC in the evening.

The smart solution: blue light filter glasses

It can also be useful to filter the blue light from monitors at times during the day. However, you should take your glasses off during the day as soon as you have finished looking at the screen. In the evening, on the other hand, blue light can throw your internal clock out of sync. This means you can either use filter software during the day or wear our Work+Play workplace/gaming glasses. In the evening, you can use our Sleep Blueblocker glasses.

Blue light filter glasses filter the blue light

These glasses do not have prescription lenses. So their job is not to let you see clearly. What they do do is block out the blue light from the screen.

It can therefore make sense to wear these glasses in the evening. For example, if you are working on your PC or watching TV just before going to bed.

Now you're sure to have an objection: wearing Blueblocker glasses over your varifocals or work glasses is not very comfortable.

That's right! But there is a solution. The Blueblocker lenses are also available as clip-ons. You can wear these over your existing glasses. Whether you're working at a computer screen or relaxing in the evening.