5 Bad Habits of Contact Lens Wearers

Wearing contact lenses ends your problem of choosing and collecting eyeglasses frames for every occasion. You won’t be asking yourself the eye wearer’s mantra: “Where did I place my glasses again?” Unlike eyeglasses, contact lenses won’t get in your way because it becomes a part of you until you need to hit the sack.

Contact lenses may give you the freedom you want but on too long and they may lead to certain eye problems. Below is a list of bad habits contact lens wearers are guilty of.

1. Sleeping with the contacts on

It might be just an hour of nap or it is just eight hours of sleep but did you know that there is a part of your eyes that won’t get a good night’s sleep? It is your cornea – the only pair you have. Your contacts act as a barrier on your eyes and prevent your cornea to “breathe” properly.

2. Not cleaning the lenses’ case

Your contact lens’ case might look clean on the surface but wait ‘til you place it under a microscope. It is probably plastered with microorganisms rinsed out from your contact lenses. Regularly wash your contact lens’ case and dry it thoroughly with a lint-free cloth.

3. Touching your lenses and its case with dirty hands

One of the dirtiest parts of your body is your pair of hands because you use it frequently to touch or hold certain objects. It is an imperative to wash your hands and dry them off thoroughly before touching the lenses or its case.

4. Buying over-the-counter

Contact lens without prescription is like buying guns without a license. It is a risky purchase. You may endanger the health of your eyes to the point of losing your eyesight altogether. Always deal with an optometrist for your eyewear needs. An eye checkup is necessary to prescribe the right contact lenses for you, may it be for cosmetic reasons or for vision correction.

5. Cleaning your lenses with tap water

We are well-aware that water from our faucets is teeming with microorganisms and is sometimes not advisable to drink at all. Never use tap water to clean or rinse your lenses. “Tap water contain an amoeba that has been known to cause Acanthamoeba keratitis, a hard-to-treat eye infection,” says ophthalmologist Keith Walter on Men’s Health. And don’t even think of using your saliva; it is absolutely an unsanitary practice, not to mention, gross. 

As a refresher, here’s a step-by-step guide from JAMA (The Journal of the American Medical Association) on how to clean your contacts. And you probably know these but still “forget” to do:

•  Wash and dry your hands thoroughly before cleaning your lenses.
•  Rub and rinse your lenses in contact lens disinfecting solution.
• Rub and rinse your case with solution after each use.
• Dry your case with a clean tissue and store it upside down with the caps off after each use.
•  Soak your lenses overnight in fresh solution.

Lastly, as always, schedule an eye checkup at least once a year to have an accurate and appropriate prescription, the American Academy of Ophthalmology advises.

Other Interesting Articles:

Eyeglasses Frames, Contact Lens or Eyeglasses and Sunglasses.