Tag: contact lenses

Benefits of Daily Contact Lenses

If you’re tired of wearing eyeglasses then daily contact lenses are a great option. Daily contact lenses allow you to have clear vision without the hassle. These single use lenses are worn and replaced daily.  They are comfortable to use and especially beneficial for people with an active lifestyle. 

Here are some facts on why you should consider daily contact lenses:

  • They are comfortable to wear. 
  • They are a healthy option.
  • They are better for dry eyes.

Why you should wear daily contact lenses

These are the common reasons why you should wear daily contact lenses:

  • You have an astigmatism or blurred vision.
  • You have corneal irregularities.
  • You are nearsighted. 
  • You are farsighted.
  • You have age-related loss of close-up vision.

The following are the benefits of using daily contact lenses:

  1. They are efficient and less expensive.

Due to the rising demand of daily contact lenses, more and more brands are introducing their own line of daily contact lenses. This results in lower prices because of the stiff competition and brands trying to attract more buyers. 

  • They reduce your risk of eye infection.

Daily contact lenses are sterile and reduce the risk of getting an infection.  Reusable lenses are more prone to bacteria and allergens.  This is not a problem when it comes to daily contact lenses since they are only used once and removed daily. 

  • They require regular eye check-ups.

The use of daily contact lenses requires you to have a current and updated prescription before you can purchase it.  A regular eye check-up is therefore needed and this means your eyes are being monitored regularly reducing the risk of an issue going undiagnosed. 

  • They are good for your eye health.

Daily contact lenses are good for your eye health compared versus reusable and longer-use contact lenses where airborne allergens tend to live and multiply.  Your eyes and tears also contain lipids and proteins that build up on reusable lenses resulting in infections. 

  • They are convenient.

Aside from protecting you from infections, daily contact lenses give you the convenience to either use them or your eyeglasses during the day.  It is convenient especially for people who have an active lifestyle. 

  • They provide allergy relief.

Daily contact lenses prevent allergies and infections. Having a fresh set of contact lenses means your eyes will be free from irritations and, ultimately, infections. 

While there are a lot of advantages that one can get from using daily contact lenses, there are some disadvantages that are worth knowing. These are the following:

  • Daily contact lenses are more expensive since they are replaced regularly.
  • Daily contact lenses create an amount of waste because they are disposed every day.

How to avoid complications when using daily contact lenses

These are the things to remember to avoid complications:

  • Make it a habit to remove the lenses before going to sleep.

Eye doctors advise contact lens wearers remove them every night just before going to sleep.  These are some of the reasons why:

  • Bacteria and amoeba may grow and multiply since the lens seals the cornea and traps fluid and, as a result, oxygen cannot reach the area. 
  • It results in dryness of the eyes.
  • Always practice good hygiene.

Make sure that your hands are clean each time you handle your contact lenses. Wash your hands using soap and water and dry them properly with a lint-free towel.

  • Always remove your lenses before taking a swim or using the hot tub.

Be sure to minimize the contact of water or saliva on your contact lenses.  Before taking a bath or before taking a swim, make sure to remove them. Also, don’t place the lens in your mouth to wet them.

  • Take extra care of lenses by using contact lens solutions.

Make sure that you use only sterile and commercially prepared contact lens solutions for your daily contact lenses. 

Aside from knowing the purpose and benefits of daily contact lenses, it’s good to know the types of contact lenses that are available nowadays. These are the following:

Soft contact lenses

These are the common choice among contact lens users since they are breathable, flexible and comfortable to use. Daily contact lenses are included in this category.  Other types of soft contact lenses include:

  • Two weekly disposable lenses
  • Monthly disposable lenses
  • Extended wear contact lenses

Gas permeable contact lenses (hard)

These contact lenses can be worn for a longer period of time and recommended for the following:

  • People who have eye conditions causing shape irregularity.
  • People who have astigmatism.
  • Soft lens users who want a sharper vision.

Colored contact lenses

These contact lenses are available in various shades and colors and can be worn as daily or monthly disposables.

It is vital you follow the instructions and to take precaution to keep things sterile.  Most importantly, they should always be removed at night to avoid eye infections. Using daily contact lenses is a popular choice especially among people who have an active lifestyle.  They have many advantages over eyeglasses and longer term contacts. 

Caring for Contact Lenses

Contacts are an excellent alternative for anyone looking to drop the glasses. They are safe, provide ease on eye strain and simplify life. It’s a lot easier to take part in athletics, deal with the heat and the cold and to sit in the steam room!

Here’s some useful information on the different contact lens options:

The first consideration when choosing the contact lens and deciding on their care procedure should be the material. Based on the material, there are 5 different types of lenses:

Soft Contact Lenses

These are made from gel-like water containing plastics referred to as hydrogel. They happen to be the most popular option worldwide. The hydrogel allows oxygen to pass through to the eye. They are available in both the replaceable and extended-wear versions. Wearers enjoy very short adaptation period, making them comfortable in a short period of time. They allow wearers to maintain active lifestyles as well as they are hard to dislodge. To care for these, water content in lenses must be high. This will ensure enough oxygen gets to your eyes while maintaining good eye health. A disadvantage that these have is they wear out fast and must be replaced periodically. Additionally, the optics is not as sharp as other lenses in the market.

Hard Contact Lenses / Rigid Gas Permeable lenses

These are made of more durable plastic and allow efficient transfer of oxygen to the eye. Wearers enjoy sharper vision than with the soft contact lenses due to their rigidity. They are fairly durable, correct a wide range of vision problems and are cost-effective. They are a bit smaller compared to the soft contact lenses and move around in the eye. This is a disadvantage as debris and dust can easily get caught up beneath it. Additionally, they require consistent wear to maintain adaptation.

Silicone Hydrogen Lenses

These are an advanced type of the soft contact lenses allowing for more oxygen to get to the eye.

Hybrid Contact Lenses

These are designed for superior comfort. They rival the traditional soft and silicone hydrogen lenses as wearers get crystal-clear vision. At the center, these hybrid contact lenses have a rigid gas permeable zone surrounded by silicone hydrogen material. For this reason, they are considered more expensive than the traditional soft contact lenses.

PMMA Lenses

These are made of polymethyl methacrylate which is a transparent rigid plastic material. They offer wearers superior optics but fail to allow oxygen to get to the eye.

 

Other types of lenses include:

Single Vision Lenses

These are prescribed to correct specific vision problems especially distant vision problems.

Toric Lenses

These are contact lenses shaped in a specific way to help with astigmatism. Their shape makes it possible for wearers to have different focusing powers on vertical and horizontal orientation.

Multifocal/Progressive/Varifocal Contact Lenses

These are designed for wearers suffering from presbyopia.

 

Monthly lenses were the most popular contact lenses when contacts were first released. They are replaced on a monthly or bi-weekly basis. Being thicker, they are more durable and long-lasting and are more resistant to drying out. These were soon phased out by more comfortable and quality lenses. Daily lenses are one of these. They are worn only for a day and discarded when you remove them. Natural deposits from the eye build up on their surface making it impossible to wear them again.

When compared to prescribed eyeglasses, contact lenses are not cheap. On average, a pair would cost an average of $196 although this could go higher depending on the style and prescription type. Astigmatism contact lenses could cost up to $400 a year while daily disposable contact lenses, dailies, cost $375 per year. These prices do not include the costs of contact solutions. These contact solutions include, multipurpose solution, hydrogen peroxide solution and specialty eye drops to name a few. According to InsiderEnvy these cost up to $140 on average per solution.

 

Caring for Reusable or Temporary Contact Lenses

Caring for your contact lenses is as simple as ensuring they are correctly stored away. Additionally, use the correct solution each night or after every use. It is advised that the wearer should rinse them off every time before placing them in to the eye. A regular care routine is washing your hands before touching the lens, cleaning each lens one at a time using the recommended cleaning fluid. Recommended cleaning solutions are typically saline. This should be used to rinse and store the contact lenses with heat and UV disinfection systems. These should be used together with enzymatic cleaning tablets to improve the life of your reusable lenses. It is advisable never to reuse or top up an old solution as this exposes you to infections.

Vision Insurance

A vision insurance policy may or may not be included with your individual health insurance plan or an employer health insurance plan. Either way, a vision insurance policy is essential as it can help you pay the expenses involved with eye care including getting new contact lenses or glasses. Depending on the policy you go for, you may get an expanded vision benefit including eye surgery procedure (LASIK), replacement of lost or stolen prescription lenses or frames, vision therapy, examinations and prescription. Notably, vision insurance policies are inexpensive. They may cost as little as $3 to $75 per month depending on the coverage.

 

It is difficult to see through scuffed and scratched lenses. Contact lenses can be especially uncomfortable when not correctly maintained and may result in further vision problems and complications. Your care procedure should be based on the type of lenses whether prescribed or not and the duration of use. But, the maintenance is worth it if you want to simplify your life, take part in athletics and enjoy the freedom they bring!