Wear Your Contacts to the Beach

So, we’ve covered a blog post about wearing your contact lenses at the pool – but what about the beach?

It’s true that the risks to your contact lenses change depending upon the body of water. Where chlorine can dry out your eyes in a pool, bodies of water such as lakes, rivers and beaches impose a much larger risk of infection.

Because of so many organisms that live within natural bodies of water, your contact lenses are exposed to many of them, some of which may stay on your lens long after you’ve left the beach. If you can at all avoid wearing your contact lenses in the water, that’s definitely recommended. But if you are going to wear your contacts in the water, be prepared to dispose of them directly afterwards.

Contact Lenses Underwater

Also, never open your eyes underwater. Ocean water has more saline than “normal” water, which can cause your lenses to literally float off of your eyes. Also, think of all the things the ocean has put in it. From the thousands of animals that live in there to the toll that humans to put on it, ocean water is exposed to a million different elements every day. Exposing your eyes and your contact lenses to contaminated water can result in eye infections; therefore opening your eyes underwater is not a good idea in general. If you need to open your eyes, only do so when wearing swimming goggles or other proper swimming eyewear.

Backup Eye Wear for Your Trip

Also, take an extra pair of lenses, lens solution and your favorite pair of eyeglasses(s). Once you’re out of the water, dispose of the contact lenses you had in and give your eyes a little break. Microorganisms can still get on your eye contacts even if you didn’t open your eyes underwater from water on your face or hands. So it’s best to discard those lenses; give your eyes a break and pop a fresh pair in when you’re ready. For this purpose, daily disposable contact lenses are ideal!

Talk to Your Optometrist

It’s not a bad idea to consult your doctor before heading on that big beach vacation this summer. And if you do go in the water, call your doctor immediately if you experience any lasting irritation, pain, sensitivity, or redness in your eyes afterward.