No matter the type of lenses you wear – daily disposable, color, or conventional soft lenses – it is crucial that proper care be taken with them. Be sure to cleanse and rinse your hands prior to handling contacts, and always use the solution recommended by your optometrist.
Contact lenses can enhance your life in many ways. Not only can they allow for clearer vision than glasses do, they won’t fall off or misplace during activity – making them great for sports and other outdoor pursuits. They are lightweight enough not to obstruct vision like rain spatters or steam ups might with glasses.
Before purchasing contacts, it’s wise to consult with an eye care provider first. They can assist in helping determine the type of lens that’s ideal for your lifestyle and suggest when best to wear them. When ready, when shopping online sellers for lenses make sure they carry all brands/models prescribed by doctors; you may even save money if ordering multiple six month or 12-month worth’s at once.
Your doctor will conduct a comprehensive eye examination in order to make sure the contacts fit properly and are safe for you to wear, including performing a tear film analysis to ascertain if your eyes are too dry to tolerate them. They may ask you to wear trial contacts at home for one week and come back into the office afterward so they can monitor how your eyes have adjusted to them.
Search the web for “contact lenses,” making sure that you enter your prescription exactly as written, as any small variations could lead to the wrong lens size and impact how well they fit on your eyes and allow vision through them. It’s important to do your own thorough research before speaking with a professional as many of your questions may be answered this way.
Success with contacts lies in proper care, cleaning and storage practices; adhering to wearing schedules prescribed by your eye doctor; disposing of used contacts according to regulations set forth; scheduling annual checkups so your doctor can update your prescription; as well as checking for signs of other eye diseases or infections – this will ensure clear vision for years
1. Wash Your Hands
Hand hygiene is key in protecting contact lenses from germs transferred by your hands. Use non-scented soap or hand sanitizer, drying your hands completely afterward before touching your contact lens. Eye care practitioners suggest, if available, using soap and water together, otherwise using hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol content as a backup option.
Be sure to scrub thoroughly when washing your hands – particularly the palms and fingertips of both hands – in order to eliminate bacteria that could otherwise irritate your eyes. Doing this removes dirt that might otherwise aggravate them further.
Once your hands are clean, use a few drops of multipurpose solution on one contact lens in the palm of your hand and gently rub it (the exact time varies according to label instructions). Rinse and repeat for each lens – making sure both sides and the case are clean.
Be mindful not to rinse your contact lenses in tap water; this could contain microbes that can lead to serious eye infections. Avoid placing them in your mouth to rinse, as well as using saliva as a wetting solution for wetting purposes. Instead, ensure your case has fresh disinfecting solution every day and every three months and replace the whole kit as part of a proper lens hygiene regime.
Follow the replacement schedule (which I’ll go into further, below) that comes recommended by your eye care provider. If your contact lenses don’t require daily replacements, speak to an optometrist about switching to daily disposable lenses, which require less maintenance and can lower infection risks.
2. Clean Your Lenses
Contact lenses must be regularly and properly maintained in order to prevent eye infections that could compromise your vision and compromise its clarity. Follow your doctor’s recommendations regarding cleaning, storing, and replacing contacts as this can help avoid common and sometimes serious problems such as bacterial or fungal eye infections that many contact lens wearers face.
Before handling lenses, carefully follow your optometrist’s directions (https://www.cdc.gov/contactlenses/protect-your-eyes.html) on hand washing, handling them carefully and gently rubbing each lens gently and thoroughly before rinsing with multipurpose solution recommended by eye care professional. Before inserting it into your eye, smudge off excess dust using a multipurpose solution; and remember to rinse your eyes using sterile saline afterwards.
Do not use tap water for rinsing or storing lenses as it can contain microorganisms that may lead to eye infections. Tap water may cause protein deposits that irritate your eyes to build up quickly, leading to redness and blurred vision in your vision.
Fingernails should also be kept short to avoid accidentally ripping or tearing contact lenses, and be sure to regularly clean and disinfect your storage case by emptying out all solution from it, wiping both chamber caps with fresh, lint-free tissue before refilling with fresh fluid, and replacing every three months.
If you are allergic to preservatives found in multipurpose solutions, your eye care professional may suggest alternative lens cleaning options such as hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide has proven highly effective at protecting against Acanthomoeba infections which may lead to serious eye infections.
3. Store Your Lenses
Installing and using the appropriate storage and care system is critical for eye health. Failing to protect your lenses could result in serious eye infections or even blindness if neglected; today’s systems are much simpler and require less time, expense and effort than they did years ago.
Before storing away your contact lenses for the day, ensure they are clean. If using a multi-purpose solution, rub each lens between index finger and thumb (or using a hand towel) until all protein deposits have been removed, rinsing and soaking afterwards; for those using peroxide-based disinfectants please follow their specific label’s instructions for use.
Once your lens is clean and properly soaked, store it in its case or another suitable container suited for holding its solution type. Be sure to use only suitable solutions for your lenses, and ensure you change out old for new. Whenever storing without cases for more than 24 hours it’s advisable only.
Be sure to keep your lens case sanitary by regularly rinsing it with solution (never water) and emptying it before storing. It should be replaced at least every three months.
Mark your case with your initials or the date you opened it so you’ll know when it needs replacing. Also avoid keeping them near any areas that could expose them to bacteria contamination, like bathroom sinks.
4. Remove Your Lenses at Night
Although wearing contact lenses daily is essential, cleaning and removing them at night is equally crucial to avoid eye irritation or lens related issues. Make sure that you adhere to any cleaning guidance provided by eye care professionals or multipurpose disinfecting solution instructions when taking this step.
Before beginning, ensure your hands are clean and dry. Also, try starting each session by starting on one eye; this will prevent your lenses from getting mixed up with each other. Once in position, rub gently with thumb and index fingers until lens has been dislodged from fingernail, but be careful not to pinch too hard, as this could lead to eye irritation. Rewetting drops or lubricant may help in this process if lenses become sticky or stuck during removal.
If you prefer using something other than your fingers, an eye care professional may suggest purchasing a plunger to remove them from the eye. Be sure to wet the tip with a rewetting solution prior to using it and ensure only its surface touches your lens; direct contact between it and your eye could lead to infection.
Once a lens is removed from its case and rinsed with fresh multipurpose solution, always empty and clean both chamber caps each day to eliminate protein build-up that could tear or cause eye irritation. By doing this regularly you will minimize protein build-up which could potentially tear or cause eye irritation in future use of your lenses.
5. Replace Your Lenses
Contacts don’t last forever. Replacement of your color contact lenses should occur according to the recommendations of an eye care provider, whether this means daily, every other day, or monthly depending on your type of lens and your doctor’s prescription. Extending this wear beyond what is suggested by your eye doctor could result in unhealthy eyes, discomfort and blurred vision if left for longer than recommended.
Prior to handling, inserting, or removing contact lenses it is wise to cleanse your hands in order to reduce the chance of touching your eyes with dirty hands, which could potentially lead to infection. Cleansing also removes cosmetics, soaps or lotions which might irritate them – an important step.
Utilizing the multipurpose disinfecting solution advised by your eye care professional, carefully clean and rinses all of your contacts. Take note to use only as prescribed; any leftover solution could damage them further.
Never wear someone else’s contact lenses as this exposes your eyes to infections and foreign particles from their eyes, spreading infections into your own. Instead, ask an eye care provider for a chart to help track proper wearing and replacement schedule.
Moreover, visit them on an annual or as often as recommended basis so they can provide advice, answer any queries and conduct a comprehensive eye health examination of your vision health.
Whenever contact lenses feel uneasy, it’s wise to remove and clean them immediately. They could be dirty, irritated or have become inside-out; for best results, rinse with rewetting drops or non-peroxide contact solution before reinserting them. If these symptoms continue, however, discontinuing wearing the lens (is) might be best.
