Many people use contact lenses to look good. Besides that contact lenses are comfortable and avoid always wearing glasses.

However, a large percentage of these people have bad habits when wearing contact lenses. That, without a doubt, has serious consequences for eye health.

In this article you will learn about the most common contact lens mistakes to avoid to protect your eyes when wearing contact lenses.

What happens if I use the lenses incorrectly?

The consequences of using and caring for lenses poorly are eye irritation and fatigue, discomfort in your eyes, keratitis, infections, ulcers or blindness.

In Contact Lenses we show you the easiest way to avoid these consequences without much effort. We want to help you maintain your visual health.

Most Common mistakes when wearing contact lenses: avoid them and maintain your visual health

It is very important that you know what the mistakes are when wearing contact lenses and how a good routine of use and maintenance can benefit you in the short and long term.

Sleep with your contact lenses on

Wearing your lenses while you sleep is one of the worst mistakes you can make.

When you sleep, there is less oxygen supply to the cornea because our eyelids are closed, in the same way that we have less hydration.

If the lenses are in at this time, we increase the action of the processes described above and, upon awakening, you will feel an annoying itch and the sensation of having the lenses “stuck” to the eyeballs.

But more importantly, you are at risk of developing an inflammation of the cornea that causes pain and discomfort.

So remove your contact lenses to sleep, even if the lenses are suitable for sleeping.

Not handling the lenses with proper hygiene

There are those who take the contact lenses when they wake up and put them in without maintaining. Or they reuse the maintenance fluid for longer than it should. This is a serious mistake.

Regardless of whether you use monthly lenses or annual lenses, you must provide them with the necessary maintenance and proper hygiene every day when you use them or stop using them.

For example, wash your hands before handling contact lenses and change the liquid for contact lenses every day, since it loses its disinfectant capacity with use.

Use expired lenses

A common mistake when using contact lenses is to extend their useful life when they expire.

Wearing your lenses when they reach the end of their useful life is risking eye ulcers and infections.

Also, if you wear expired contact lenses you will lose quality of vision and your eyes will begin to feel dry.

So, change your contact lenses when your eye care professional recommends it. Your vision is at stake.

Rubbing your eyes

Rubbing your eyes when wearing contact lenses is one of the most common mistakes. But this habit should be avoided because, if there is a contaminant inside the lens, it is capable of causing a serious injury or ulcer.

Also, rubbing your eyes vigorously is a sign of eye fatigue. And that implies that your system is not comfortable with the lenses.

In that case, visit your eye care professional to determine the reason for the problem and the best solution.

As a recommendation, we advise you to rub your eyes after removing contact lenses, and do it with a cold water compress.

Reuse the sanitising solution

When you clean and disinfect your lenses each day, the liquid used accumulates colonies of bacteria, viruses, fungi, dust particles and other particles capable of causing infections in your eyes.

Reusing contact lens fluid helps these bacteria to reproduce more quickly and easily.

So, even if you want to save a little money, don’t do it with the contact lens disinfectant solution.

Change this liquid every day, before storing the lenses in their case and after cleaning them.

Use natural water to clean and maintain the lenses

Although tap water appears clean, it contains millions of bacterial microorganisms capable of harming your eyes.

Consequences of using tap water to maintain and clean lenses include vision loss and infections, such as keratitis.

Although many recommend using water and salt for contact lenses, this substance does not disinfect them, it only maintains them.

So don’t go out without your lens cleaning and maintenance kit. Under no circumstances clean them with water and salt.

Wearing lenses more than recommended

Experts recommend in most cases to wear the lenses 12 hours per day, maximum. The risks when using them longer are eye infections, such as keratitis .

Another consequence of this mistake when wearing contact lenses is that you will suffer from dry eyes, which can cause discomfort and a feeling of the lens sticking to the eye.

So the recommendation is simple: do not exceed those 12 hours a day with contact lenses. When you get home, take them off and allow your eyes to breathe.

Take a shower or swim with the lenses

Doctors warn that those who wear contact lenses for swimming can get an amoeba called Acanthamoeba.

Many swimmers want to use contact lenses to practice the sport; but, even if they have protective goggles for diving, they do not 100% prevent the passage of water.

Not to mention the strong impact that the chlorine contained in swimming pools can cause on the lens.

Also, when taking a shower, apart from the risk posed by the water, there is also the possibility that a particle of the soap could enter the eye and cause problems with the lens.

For all this, do not hesitate to remove your lenses when you go swimming or showering.

Not changing the lens case

Over the days, the contact lens case becomes a potential cradle for bacteria and germs that cause conditions to your eyes.

The recommendation is to change the contact lens case every 3 months.

Apply makeup before contact lenses

The eyes are protagonists in the daily makeup of many women. Whether to go to work or go out at night, eyeliner, mascara or shadows give beauty to the eyes.

But if you’re a girl who wears contact lenses, makeup can work against your eye health if you make a mistake.

If you put in your contact lenses after putting on makeup, you may bring chemical particles into your eyes that can irritate your retina, damage your lenses, or cause a corneal ulcer.

So when you go to do your makeup, put your contact lenses in first. Similarly, when you want to remove your makeup, remove your contact lenses first.

Do not use artificial tears if you have dry eyes

This error when using contact lenses occurs for several reasons. You may suffer from dry eyes, but it also occurs with a lot of screen time, as the eye blinks less under these circumstances.

Dry eye causes eye fatigue, itchiness, and a feeling that the lenses stick to the eye.

To combat this problem, use artificial tears. In this way, your eyes will be hydrated and free of bacterial agents at all times.

Ignore discomfort when wearing them

If you experience visual discomfort from contact lenses, don’t make the mistake of ignoring it and staying home.

See your eye care professional immediately to discuss the cause of the condition and what medications are prescribed to resolve the situation.

Importance of using contact lenses properly

To avoid the 12 common mistakes when wearing contact lenses, you need to be aware and want to keep your eye health in good condition.

Contact lenses will help correct nearsightedness, astigmatism and farsightedness, only if you do your part and wear them as prescribed.

The key to everything is that you create a good routine of cleaning, maintenance and hygienic use of the lenses.

In short, you can avoid infections, eye irritation and fatigue, discomfort, keratitis, ulcers or blindness if you don’t make one of the most common mistakes when wearing contact lenses.