Can You Wear Glasses in a Sauna or Steam Room?

A sauna or steam room can be a great place to relax, but it isn't necessarily the best environment for your prescription glasses.

High temperatures, moisture and sudden changes in temperature can all potentially affect your eyewear, so removing your glasses before entering is generally the safer choice.

Why can heat be a problem?

Glasses are designed to cope with normal everyday temperatures, but a sauna is considerably hotter than most environments your eyewear encounters.

Prolonged exposure to excessive heat may affect certain frame materials and lens coatings.

Steam rooms add another factor: very high humidity.

Will your lenses fog up?

Almost certainly.

Moving into a warm, humid environment can quickly cause condensation to form across cooler lenses.

In a steam room, the amount of moisture in the air can make keeping your lenses clear particularly difficult.

Can heat affect the frame?

Different frame materials respond differently to heat.

Excessive temperatures may cause some materials to expand, soften or gradually lose their original shape.

That could affect how comfortably and securely your glasses fit afterwards.

What should you do with your glasses?

Before entering a sauna or steam room:

• Remove your glasses.

• Place them inside a protective hard case.

• Leave the case somewhere cool and dry.

• Avoid leaving them directly beside heaters or other heat sources.

A proper case also protects your glasses from being accidentally knocked or stepped on.

Avoid sudden temperature changes

Moving glasses rapidly between very hot and much cooler environments isn't ideal.

Keeping them outside the sauna allows your eyewear to remain at a more stable temperature.

What if you can't see clearly without them?

If you have a stronger prescription, take additional care when moving around without your glasses.

Make sure you can safely navigate the environment and keep your glasses somewhere accessible outside the heated area.

Protect your glasses from unnecessary heat

Your prescription glasses accompany you through most of everyday life, but there are some environments where leaving them safely outside makes sense.

A few minutes inside a protective case can help keep your frames and lenses in excellent condition while you enjoy the sauna or steam room.