Saskatoon optometrist Rachael Berger has seen an increase in the number of patients concerned about their vision when driving at night.
“I’m seeing an alarming number of perfectly young, healthy individuals coming in and saying, ‘I’m having a hard time seeing at night, what’s going on,’” she told The Current guest host Peter Armstrong.
She tells patients it’s not them — it’s the LED headlights increasingly used on vehicles.
When it’s dark, Berger explains, the rods in our eyes turn on to help us see better.
“When you’re driving at night and your rods are activated, and all of a sudden this blast of light comes, it can be very jarring, because our night system isn’t prepared or necessarily expecting that,” she said.
Advocates are calling on the federal government and car manufacturers to adjust their regulations and industry standards around bright headlights because there needs to be a better balance between solutions to help drivers see while not compromising other’s safety.
If poor alignment is enough to blind someone when driving then the headlights are too bright. Driving is a very dynamic activity and inclines and bumps change where headlights are pointed constantly. Your headlights need to be dim enough that people can actually look at them without losing all their nighttime vision.