What You Need this Holiday Season: Extended Wear Lenses!
Late nights at holiday parties, snuggling in front of a fire ’til the wee hours, or ringing in the New Year…If you wear contacts and want to be able to see at 3 o’clock in the morning, you are going to need at least one of the following: either a great pair of glasses (for the next morning) or extended wear contacts!
Since I’m hopeful you already have a great pair of back-up designer eyeglasses frames in your current prescription, today I want to give you the insiders scoop on extended wear contact lenses.
Extended wear is a special category of contacts that are FDA approved for continuous wear overnight. Some extended wear lenses can be worn for a week at a time, others for two weeks, and some for up to 30 days.
The advantages to wearing this type of lens is pretty obvious. How nice would it be to wake up and be able to see? Or, how easy would it be to just go to bed without adding the extra time to remove and clean your lenses? Ahhhh…the convenience of this type of contact lenses makes them an easy choice for a lot of people!
Extended wear contact lenses are made of a silicone hydrogel material that allows a lot of oxygen to pass in and out of the eyes. This keeps them comfortable and reduces the risk of infections that would develop if your eyes weren’t able to “breathe” in this way. Also, because you are throwing away your contact lenses and getting out a new pair on a regular schedule, extended wear lens wearers rarely have to worry about a build up of proteins (also called lipids) or other mineral deposits on their lenses.
Weekend camping trips, international airplane rides, overnight business travel, or even middle of the night wake-ups to feed a baby are all just a little easier when you don’t have to fiddle with finding your glasses or cleaning your contacts!
But, even if you do opt for the ease of extended wear contacts, many optometrists still recommend taking them out overnight for a night or two during your wear period. This is to give your eyes a break, or a chance to repair any environmental damage. It is a chance to disinfect your lenses just in case you came into contact with something you don’t want in there long term (smoke, for example).
Wondering if extended wear contacts could make your holiday season a little happier? Call your optometrist at America’s Best today and you can be wearing your new contacts before it’s time to sing Auld Lang Sine.
