Contacts enhance your vision significantly, and are more flexible than eyeglasses. Lenses may work perfectly with people with certain lifestyles, while others may prefer the simplicity of eye glasses. However, there are contact lens pros and cons that you must consider before deciding to get a pair.
This article helps you learn about the advantages and downsides of contact lenses. This way, you can determine whether contacts can enhance the quality of your vision and daily life.
8 Contact Lens Pros and Cons That Can Affect You
Pros
- Contacts give you a clearer, more natural field of vision.
Contact lenses allow you to have a wider field of vision, unlike glasses, which do not extend to your peripheral sight. It is especially helpful for activities like driving or sports. Contacts sit directly on the surface of your eye and move along with it. This ensures a broader line of sight, minus any frames or lens distortion.
Special types of contacts, like bi and multifocal lenses, have unique qualities, too. Bifocal contacts’ pros and cons include having two prescriptions in one lens, suitable for near/far vision needs, but can cause disorientation and eye strain. Multifocal contact lenses’ pros and cons involve a smooth transition between prescriptions, but can take a while to adapt to. It can also cause disorientation, eye strain, and headaches.
- They enable an active lifestyle.
Prescription glasses can hinder you from physical activities like exercise, running, or various sports. Flexibility and freedom from frames is one of the main pros of using contact lenses. They are lightweight and less likely to interfere with close contact, headgear, and all sorts of movement that can otherwise affect your eyes.
- Lenses can enhance your self confidence.
Although eyeglasses are essential, not everyone is confident wearing them. Glasses can make your eyes appear smaller or larger, depending on your prescription. Fortunately, contact lenses don’t obstruct your face the way frames do, so people can see your eyes and facial features clearly. Contacts also allow unobstructed freedom to style yourself using fashion accessories and makeup.
- High prescriptions can be recommended for contacts.
People with high prescriptions require thicker lenses, which can weigh on the nosebridge and restrict blood flow, oxygen, and cause headaches. High-powered contact lenses, custom, and other specialty types can be prescribed to avoid this problem. Soft contacts can correct up to -12.00 and as high as +/-20.00 diopters.
Cons
- Contact lenses can affect your LASIK surgery.
If your goal is to get LASIK eye surgery in the future, you must completely stop wearing contact lenses a few weeks to a month before the surgery. Some of the contact lenses drawbacks include distortion of the cornea’s natural shape, resulting in inaccurate measurements during your LASIK assessment. It can also impact the effectiveness of LASIK surgery and lead to potential complications in the future.
- Contacts are more challenging to wear and maintain.
The most prominent contact lenses drawbacks include application and maintenance. New wearers can find contact insertion and removal tricky. It may take weeks to get used to the process. Proper application is also essential to eye hygiene.
Maintenance is one of the downsides of contact lenses. How you maintain contacts depends on the type you use. Daily disposable lenses, for instance, require no cleaning and can be disposed of immediately. Reusable lenses need to be cleaned and stored properly. They also require replacement within a certain timeframe (bi-weekly or monthly).
- Contact lenses make you prone to higher risk of infections.
Without proper use, cleaning, or maintenance, contact lenses can cause eye irritation. Other serious eye conditions include corneal ulcers, corneal abrasion, eye infections, and keratitis. These contact lenses drawbacks not only affect your vision, but also your overall health and ability to perform daily activities. It is best to proceed with caution and care when getting contacts.
- Contacts are costlier than glasses.
While a pair of contacts is more affordable up front, you need to switch to a new pair monthly, bi-weekly, or yearly. Annual lenses also require strict hygiene to last long enough. It is generally no cheaper than eyeglasses. Consider that accumulated expenses include cleaning solutions, new pairs, and the cost of specialty lenses if you need them.
Can LASIK Eye Surgery Prevent Contact Lenses Drawbacks?
Yes, LASIK surgery generally prevents reliance on eyeglasses or contact lenses. It corrects refractive errors like astigmatism, nearsightedness, and farsightedness and gives patients the freedom that prescriptive eyewear cannot. By reshaping your cornea, LASIK restores clearer, sharper, and more focused vision. It also takes just a few days to a week to heal from surgery, so you can enjoy immediate results.
While contact lenses offer you more freedom than eye glasses, it is also important to consider both the benefits and challenges of using them. If contact lenses suit your lifestyle, consult with an ophthalmologist to get an accurate prescription and the right medical advice for your eyes.
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AsPac Eye Laser and Surgicenter is an eye clinic in the Philippines that offers safe LASIK in Laguna, as well as PRK surgery, and ICL surgery at reasonable costs. Our patient-centered eye care services are done by top ophthalmologists. We also use only the latest advanced medical technology for precise, simplified vision treatment. Don’t let the downsides of contact lenses stop you from leading an active, barrier-free lifestyle. Schedule a consultation with us today.