Don’t want to wear glasses? Contact lenses are a great alternative. And with so many varieties to choose from, nearly everyone can wear them. Daily disposable lenses make wearing contacts a breeze — wear them once and throw them away.
Other options include gas permeable contact lenses, lenses for overnight wear, and special-effect contact lenses.
Ideal candidates for contact lenses have naturally well-lubricated eyes. If they are not, the optometrist will advise. Contact lenses will be recommended depending on the curvature of the patient’s eyes.
Types of contact lenses
There are two main types of contact lenses; soft lenses and hard lenses. The most popular are soft lenses because they can be disposed of after use, unlike the hard lenses. Disposable, soft lenses, can be worn daily or used for an extended period of time. Daily wear lenses come in different options: daily, fortnight, or monthly. Extended wear lenses are worn for up to 30 days without having to remove them. This option is good for those who do not like the maintenance of daily wear contacts. With this however, comes a higher risk of infection because they are worn for an extended time.
Here are some do’s and don’ts to educate you on contact lense use:
Sharing is not caring
Contact lenses should be worn only by the owner. Sharing contact lenses can cause spreading of infection and other harmful particles.
You snooze, you lose
Contact lenses should not be slept in unless they are the extended wear type. If you wear your contact lenses while you sleep, it deprives your eyes of oxygen and can lead to infections.
Say no to water
Contact lenses should not be worn while swimming, showering, or bathing in the tub. Although tap water can be clean to drink and bathe in, tap water can cause severe eye infections from parasites. Because of this reason, you should also never soak or rinse your contact lenses in tap water.
Contact lenses are a great alternative to wearing glasses as long as they are well taken care of by you. Visit our optometrist at O’Brien Vision Center today to learn more.
