Pickleball Is Super Popular!
The number of people playing has gone up a lot, by more than 150% in just three years. I really like playing pickleball, but more people getting into it means more injuries are happening. Usually, people think of getting hurt with twisted ankles or broken bones in pickleball. But now, there’s another worry: eye injuries are becoming more common.
Pickleball is a mix of table tennis, tennis, and badminton. You play on a smaller court with paddles and a plastic ball with holes in it. You usually play with four people, two on each team.
Risk of Injury
Because the game moves fast and the ball is small, there’s a bigger chance of hurting your eyes. The ball can fly really fast, and since players are so close together, accidents can happen. With newer and better paddles, the balls can fly up to 90 miles per hour. Sometimes, paddles hit the ball into someone’s face, or players bump into each other, making it more likely to hurt someone’s eyes.
Big-name people like Michelle Pfeiffer and Savannah Guthrie have talked about getting hurt playing pickleball, which shows how serious it can be. Even though we don’t have a lot of official data on eye injuries from pickleball yet, doctors are starting to talk about it more. They’re seeing all kinds of eye problems, from small scratches to serious stuff like detached retinas.
Eye Safety
It’s surprising that there aren’t rules about wearing special glasses to protect your eyes in pickleball. But soon, it might become necessary, just like it is in racquetball. Especially since many older folks play pickleball, and they might already have eye problems. So, it’s really important for everyone playing pickleball to think about eye safety.
Playing pickleball is fun and a great way to stay active and hang out with friends. But it’s super important to be careful, especially about your eyes. Wearing special glasses that are made to protect your eyes could make all the difference and keep pickleball a safe and enjoyable game for everyone.
https://www.aao.org/eyenet/article/more-than-a-pickle-ocular-injury-risks
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