By Bill Sardi
Though the human eye is designed to receive light, look at the elaborate protection from light designed into the eye:
Ott's work suggests that UV is beneficial to eye health but his work was done with animals, who have different filtering and spectral sensitivities in their eyes. He also worked on flowers, but they are photosensitive due to chlorophyll.
Humans don't have chlorophyll. There is a bit of truth in Ott's work, in that visible light stimulates the retina and is required for health of the adrenals. Removal of cloudy cataracts stimulates adrenal glands and improves immunity in older adults.
Most of the health benefits accrued to UV light are via the production of vitamin D in the skin, not the eye.
Terrible misconception by alternative doctors.
No UV Rays Even Reach The Retina In Most Adult Eyes Since They Are Filtered By The Crystalline Lens!
Exposure to more ocular UV rays just promotes more cataracts and retinal degeneration.
Green wavelengths of light, not invisible UV rays, are the most ideal for remedying Seasonal Affective Disorder/Winter depression as evidenced by the first reference below.
Many thanks to Bill Sardi for helping me greater appreciate the potential problems of UV exposure to the retina. I was confused about this issue and I believe others may also not recognize the potential danger of excessive UV to the retina. My new approach will be to abandon the Ott sunglasses and get some UV protection sunglasses. This will not be hard to do as virtually all sunglasses except Ott's have UV protection.
References
Treatment of seasonal affective disorder with green light and red light. Am J Psychiatry 1991 Apr;148(4):509-11
Photic maculopathy in a patient receiving bright light therapy. Am J Psychiatry. 1997 Sep;154(9):1319. No abstract available.
Retinopathy and bright light therapy. Am J Psychiatry. 1992 Nov;149(11):1610-1. No abstract available.