5 Huge Mistakes We're All Making With Our Contact Lenses

Fess up to your contact crimes (most of us are guilty of at least one).

By Aviva Patz, Women's Health

 

Up to half of soft-contact wearers report dryness that can become worse when staring at a screen. Enter CooperVision Biofinity, new lenses designed to thwart computer vision syndrome and ease screen fatigue. But whether you're wearing these or a more standard pair, not caring for them correctly can trigger or exacerbate eye issues. Fess up to your contact crimes (most of us are guilty of at least one) and reform your ways.

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Christine Frapech

Repeatedly crashing out in your lenses (even if they're billed as "overnight" contacts) can starve the cornea (the front surface of the eye) of oxygen, setting the stage for dryness, discomfort, redness, blurry vision, and swelling, says Nguyen. If you have even a superficial scratch on your eye (stemming from, say, rubbing or getting something in it), the lens may trap bacteria that causes keratitis, an inflammation that sends nearly 60,000 people to the ER each year with eye redness and pain. It doesn't take much; one Australian study found people who occasionally (less often than once a week) snooze with their lenses in have a 6.5 times higher risk for severe corneal infection than people who wear their lenses only during the day. The lack of overnight oxygen to the eye also increases your risk for corneal ulceration—a painful open sore on the cornea that can cause vision loss—tenfold, says Lisa Park, M.D., an associate professor of ophthalmology at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City.

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Christine Frapech

Contacts are like Gremlins: You shouldn't get them wet. Water can cause lenses to swell, change shape, and stick to the eye, which can scratch the cornea, making it easier for infection-causing bacteria to enter. And H2O from showers, pools, hot tubs, lakes, rivers, and oceans can contain microorganisms that can get caught under a lens and cause painful infections that, infrequently, lead to permanent vision loss, says Nguyen. So, yes, you'll want to invest in a pair of goggles for swimming and learn to shave your legs sans contacts—rarely, tap water contains a parasite called acanthamoeba that can burrow into the eye and cause significant damage.

Christine Frapech

The only liquids that should touch your lenses are ones specifically made for contacts. But in one survey, people admitted to rinsing with everything from beer to baby oil, soda, petroleum jelly, lemonade, fruit juice, and butter! The right way: With freshly washed and dried hands, rub the lenses with a cleaning solution to remove built-up mucus, other secretions, and deposits that can lead to bacterial growth, then rinse thoroughly with the same solution before soaking contacts overnight in a multipurpose disinfecting solution.
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Christine Frapech

Squeezing a couple of extra days from your pair might save you money, but you'll pay in other ways: Keeping the contacts in for too long can allow microorganisms and protein deposits to accumulate on the lenses, spurring infections that can cause long-term vision damage, says Nguyen. Best not to risk it, even just a day or two. (Got puffy eyes or dark circles? Fix it with Bio Correct Under Eye Concealer from the Women's Health Boutique.)
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Christine Frapech

It's a breeding ground for microscopic germs that can lead to infection. Cleaning it daily could halve the number of lens-related infections each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Empty and rinse your case with fresh cleaning solution (just adding new solution to the old gives bugs a chance to multiply), then turn it upside down to air-dry on a paper towel. Replace the case at least every three months, sooner if it gets cracked.

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