Contact Lenses

Contact Lenses are a usually placed on the cornea of the eye to correct an eyesight deficiency instead of the use of spectacles or eye glasses. The main difference between glasses and contacts are lenses are lightweight and virtually invisible whilst still providing the same corrective action as eye glasses.

When contacts where invented their primary purpose was corrective and convenience. The benefits:

• Same vision correction as glasses however lightweight
• Lenses are not affected by wet weather or humid weather causing steaming of glasses
• Lenses provide a greater field of vision than glasses because they are applied directly to the cornea
• Suitable for a greater range of physical sporting activities than glasses
• Ability to treat ophthalmological conditions such as Keratoconus better than glasses because of the direct application to the cornea

Corrective contact lenses are designed to improve eye conditions such as:

• Refractive mismatch in the eyeball
• Short (myopia) or long sightedness (hypermetropia)
• Blurred vision due to distored cornea or lens (astigmatism)
• Color blindness - lenses do not correct the blindness however allows some people to distinguish colors better
• Dyslexia - ChromaGen lenses have shown to assist some sufferers

As contact lens technology improves and the desire for makeovers increases the cosmetic use of contact lenses increases with the main reason being people believe they look more attractive with contacts rather than glasses. Cosmetic or decorative colored contacts are designed to change the appearance of the eye by the addition of a variety colored tints.

Contacts now come in a range of wear from daily contacts designed to be removed prior to sleeping, extended wear over several days and continuous wear up to several weeks. If you wish to use contact lenses it is very important to visit your optometrist who will check your current vision and calculate the appropriate lens required for eyesight correction.

Your optometrist will also advise you on care and cleaning of lenses and your eye in order to avoid common infections such as conjunctivitis or other bacterial infections as well as any corneal abrasion through the incorrect use of lenses. Even if you wish to use contacts for cosmetic reasons your optometrist can still recommend use and maintenance or advise you of colored lens that can offer corrective features.

You can buy discount or cheap lenses online including brands such as Acuvue, Freshlook, Bausch and Lomb and Focus which your eye specialist can advise which are most suitable for your eyes as well as the recommended script required.