[thedoc (OP)]

What is better for you eyes when shortsighted - wearing eyelenses or glasses?

Asked by Korochkina Daria


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[chapter podcast=1001532 track=16.12.13/Naked_Scientists_Show_16.12.13_1006079.mp3]  ...or Listen to the Answer[/chapter] or [download as MP3]

[curiousmind]

It is OK to wear one or the other! If you are using contact lenses though, you must make sure that the lens are cleaned very well using saline solution if it is lenses that you are using monthly, for daily lenses, you must dispose of the lens at the end of each day. Not cleaning the lenses properly can have consequences, as you may end up getting eye infections, which are not pleasant. That is the downside to contact lenses. The advantage of contact lenses is that if you are worried about the way you look when wearing glasses then you can wear lenses and no-one will know that you are wearing lenses. Glasses are much easier!! 

[CliffordK]

Glasses/Contacts are a matter of personal choice. 

I've worn glasses (astigmatism) for most of my life.  I did try soft-contacts for a few years a while ago.  I'm not sure how long the contacts were supposed to last.  For astigmatism, they are weighted toric lenses, and more expensive than other lenses.  Inevitably if I fell asleep with the contact lenses in the eyes, they would go out of focus.  I thought the contacts made my eyes more sensitive to dust and chemicals.

The glasses give my eyes an element of protection, and I tend to use them rather than safety-glasses or goggles (I now only buy prescription safety-glasses).  They get wet while riding a bicycle in the rain which is a bit of a pain, but they do act like mini windshields.

Personally I prefer photo-grey glasses that are reasonably clear in the dark, but act as sunglasses in the direct sunlight, thus eliminating the need for additional sunglasses protection.

One of the reasons that I had chosen to try the contacts earlier was that I was working on a project that required using both a microscope and a computer, and changing from one to another.  I thought the contacts would aid with the switching of views.

[lululenses]

If contact lenses fit properly, they should be imperceptible.  The only time you should feel them is when you put them in and take them out.  You didn't mention your Rx, so depending on that, it could be easier or more difficult to fit you.  And yes, the peripheral view you get with contacts beats glasses hands down.  But you have to have a good fit and the right fit.