It took working for an eye doctor for Mily Boone to wear sunglasses.

“I think people don’t realize how important it is to protect your eyes,” said Boone, the office manager at the Lawrence Family Vision Clinic, 3111 W. Sixth St. “Even though my mom always told me, ‘Protect your eyes; wear your sunglasses,’ I never wore them until working here.”

Any time of the year, but especially during the summer, it’s important to protect your eyes from the sun’s UV rays by wearing a hat and sunglasses with 100 percent UV protection.

The skin isn’t the only organ that gets a sunburn. The eyes are susceptible too.

Elizabeth Crandon, optometrist at Crandon & Crandon Optometry, 1019 Massachusetts St., said UV rays from the sun can damage the surface of the cornea, causing a condition called photokeratitis, which is similar to “welder’s burn.”

“This can be very painful, but luckily, symptoms last only a day or two,” she said.

When wearing a hat, anything that shades your eyes is helpful, but with sunglasses, quality is a concern. A pair of cheap glasses might not provide 100 percent UV protection, and the lenses themselves may impair the wearer’s vision.

“Glasses that say they block 98 to 100 percent UVA and UVB should offer adequate protection,” Crandon said. “However, lenses of lesser quality typically are of poor optical quality, having distortion, uneven tinting, poor glare protection, or allow UV rays to enter peripherally.”

Sharon Green, optometrist at Lawrence Family Vision Clinic, said that dark glasses without UV protection and poor quality can actually cause more damage than no glasses. Tinted lenses allow the pupil to dilate, letting more light into the eye. If the lenses don’t have 100 percent UV protection, that light can cause more damage than if your eyes were unprotected.

“If you get dark sunglasses from a gas station that don’t have UV protection — they’re dark, your eyes will dilate and let more light in, and it can be very dangerous,” she said.

Green and Crandon both recommend glasses with polarization, which blocks the sun’s glare and eases the wearer’s need to squint to see. What the wearer sees looks more sharp and crisp than without polarization, especially with water sports, where glare can be intense.

Sports participants also should consider break-proof lenses such as Trivex or polycarbonate that will protect the eyes during impact sports, Crandon said.

When in the pool, swimmers can wear goggles, but it’s best to remove contact lenses. Chlorine can irritate the eyes regardless.

“Chlorine can dehydrate your eyes and make them feel grainy and itchy,” Green said.

Eye drops can alleviate redness and itchiness, but avoid drops with the active ingredients naphazoline or tetrahydrozoline. Instead look for lubricating or “natural tears” drops to alleviate itchy eyes.

There’s a long-term benefit to wearing sunglasses, too. Harmful UV rays can slowly damage the eyes over time and increase the risk for conditions such as cataracts, macular degeneration and pinguecula, which is the thickening of the white parts of the eyes. Because of that, it’s important to not only wear sunglasses as an adult, but for parents to encourage their children to get in the habit of wearing them, too.

“Studies show that UV rays can contribute to the progression of these conditions, particularly those at risk such as those with fair complexions and blue eyes,” Crandon said. “In both cases, the effects are cumulative over one’s lifetime, emphasizing the need for children to be protected from an early age.”