Contact Lenses Beginner Guide | Things You Should Know & Do For Handling Contact Lenses

Wearing a contact lens is very low risk if done properly according to the manufacturer’s guidelines. 45 million people in the U.S. rely on contact lenses for their comfort and convenience. It is also safe for children under the age of 18, making up 8% of contact lens wearers. However, it is important to remember that contact lenses are considered as medical devices, regulated by the FDA. Wearing contact lenses without a beginners guide can be dangerous for new users. A contact lens can become a highway for germs to hop right into your eyes. This is why improper contact lens hygiene and care has been linked to a higher risk of complications. Failure to follow contact lens wearing guidelines can lead to serious eye infections that can cause blindness. So, here are the 6 beginners guide tips to keep in mind before your first contact lenses experience: 1. Always remember to sanitize your hand Always sanitize your hands and scrub your nails before touching your contact lens. This may sound like common sense as you are about to be touching something that goes straight onto your eye. However, it is also something people often take lightly or do not do properly. On average, there are 3,200 bacteria from 150 different species on our hands. Don’t let them get a free ride onto your eyes! 2. Use contact lens solution Never use tap water to rinse your contact lenses. As a beginner, you may be a little hesitant about following our guide on using a contact lens solution. After all, you use water to wash your hands, why can’t you use it to rinse your contacts? Similar to why we don’t get sick with germs on our hands, our eyes don’t have the same protection. Instead, use either saline solution or multipurpose solution. Saline solutions are great for rinsing and cleaning lenses but not for storing. Multipurpose solutions are good for all the steps: rinsing, washing, and storing, as the name suggests. You can rinse your eyes with them too. However, saline solution is cheaper thus you can first clean your lenses with saline solution and keep them in multipurpose solutions afterward. 3. Don’t wear contact lenses immediately Yearly and monthly contact lenses are stored in a special solution and they require soaking before wearing. This is because while the solution is made with the main purpose of protecting your contact lens. It is not comfortable for your eyes and can especially cause discomfort for those with dry eyes. With daily disposable lenses, the contacts are stored in a solution with higher moisture content suitable for the eyes. So, you can open and use them immediately. With yearly and monthly contact lenses, we recommend rinsing and soaking for at least 6 hours before wearing. 4. Change contact lens solution frequently Daily users change their contact lens solutions every day. However, cosmetic users may store their contacts in contact lens solutions for great lengths of time between events. This keeps the lenses moist, safe, and comfortable for wearing. However, the ingredients wear off over time and your contacts will get progressively harsher for your eyes. Beginners may not notice the change in their contact lenses without a guide. Changing your contact lens solution around once a week and the day before you wear your contact lens will solve this issue. If you forget and find your contact lens dried out, discard them immediately as it is potentially damaged. 5. Check the contact lenses before wearing Wearing contact lenses inside out is a common mistake among beginners. Contact lenses are so thin and flexible that beginners may not realize that they have been turned inside out. Hold the lenses on your fingertips and check from the side to see whether they are flipped. If the sides of the contact lens curve outwards like a bowl, means that it is flipped and can cause discomfort to the eyes. 6. Discard your contact lenses as recommended When your contact lens has reached its disposable period or has dried out, dispose of it immediately. Yearly lenses have the maximum disposable period of 12 months but they can wear out faster when worn often. Wearing contact lenses exposes them to the air and eyes, increasing the chances of getting dirt and bacteria. While your tears wash most of them away, it still leads to a protein deposit build-up on your contacts. More protein deposits lead to more discomfort and a higher chance of contracting an eye infection. Frequency cleaner can help with cleaning your contact lenses more effectively or simply replace them altogether. If you decide to wear your yearly contacts daily, we suggest changing them every 6-8 months. That’s it! This beginners guide may only offer 6 simple tips for wearing contact lenses but their importance is immeasurable. Good luck with your contact lens exploration! Ready to start? Get your first contact lenses here: https://www.uniqso.com/