Corrective lenses are wonderful things that allow us to enjoy the advantages of good eyesight, and we need to take good care of them.
Whether you wear glasses or contact lenses, we want to offer you a few tips on how to make sure they last as long as they should so you can get the most out of them!
Taking Care of Your Glasses
Veteran glasses-wearers all know that it doesn’t take much to put a scratch on one of the lenses. The way to protect them is to always clean them with proper materials. Microfiber or cotton cloths are the best, and you can pair those with glasses cleaner you purchase or you could simply make your own by adding a drop of dish soap to a spritzer bottle of water.
Sometimes you don’t have your glasses cleaning cloth handy, and what happens then? The edge of a cotton T-shirt might work in a pinch (though it isn’t ideal), but never use tissues or napkins. These are made of wood pulp and can easily scratch a lens. Also avoid using chemicals like window cleaner and ammonia, which can dissolve the protective coatings.
Taking Care of Your Contacts
Contact lenses are a different ball game from glasses. They sit directly on the eye, so there’s an element of hygiene involved, not just maintenance. Always wash your hands before inserting or removing contact lenses, and never reuse old solution when storing them. Used solution is contaminated!
It’s important to use contact solution, not water, because harmful microorganisms live in every source of freshwater, and they will stick to your contacts if they get the chance. Another important way to keep contacts clean and minimize the risk of eye infection is to follow the replacement instructions on the packaging. That means don’t wear dailies longer than a day, don’t wear monthlies longer than a month, etc.
Prevent Eye Infections
There are several other things you can do to protect your eyes from eye infections as a contacts-wearer. One is to not rub your eyes, because that’s a great way to introduce new germs or damage the contact lens. It’s also good to blink often, stay hydrated, and use eyedrops when you need them to keep your eyes moisturized. In addition to replacing your contacts on schedule, make sure you only wear them for as many consecutive hours as recommended.
Come to Us With Your Lens Problems
If you’re having any trouble with your lenses, whether you wear glasses or contacts, you can bring them in! Whether it’s a scratched glasses lens or your contacts are causing an unusual amount of irritation, we can help. Even if everything’s going great with your lenses, it’s still important to keep up with your regular eye exam schedule, because not every eye or lens problem is an obvious one.
Your healthy vision is our highest priority!
Top image used under CC0 Public Domain license. Image cropped and modified from original.
The content on this blog is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.
