The Eye-Damaging Effects of Decorative Contact Lenses

Imagine this: you have the perfect, spooky costume for Halloween. Or, you’re suiting up for this year’s Cosplay event. In either case, your look is nearly spot-on, but you’re missing one thing: the right eye color. Whether you’re looking to add that “wow” factor in either case, it can be tempting to pop in some decorative contact lenses to complete your costume. After all, why not fully become someone else, right down to the eye color, if only for a day?

For some, it goes beyond just a fun addition to a holiday outfit – it becomes an everyday fashion accessory. And why not? You can often pick up some colored contacts at your local costume store or order them from an online retailer. It all seems innocent enough, right? Well, unfortunately, when dealing with the eyes, it’s never that simple. Just like prescription contacts, decorative contact lenses should only be worn if they are fitted and prescribed by an eye doctor.

Yes, you read that correctly – decorative contacts need to be professionally fitted and prescribed before you pop them in your eyes. This is because they are considered a medical device, and so the FDA requires that they only be sold with a prescription. It is actually illegal to sell them in Halloween and novelty stores! This is because your eyes could suffer some fairly bad consequences, like vision-threatening infections, if you choose to purchase them from someone who is not an eye doctor.

Dangers of Non-Prescription Colored Contacts

Our eyes are incredibly sensitive parts of our bodies. This is why it is important to take such care when deciding whether to put anything in your eyes, especially something as long-term as a contact lens. If you put in a pair of any old cosmetic contact lenses, you could be putting yourself at serious risk.

This is how contacts can damage your eyes: contacts that don’t fit properly can move around on the surface of your cornea and cause a whole host of issues, from bacterial eye infections to even blindness. They can also cause a corneal abrasion, or scratch on your cornea, which is extremely painful. If the scratch is severe enough, it can cause vision loss and even complete loss of the eye. Ill-fitting decorative contact lenses can also cause corneal infections, which are like ulcers on your cornea.

Plus, you can get plain old pink eye, or conjunctivitis, from poorly-fitting colored contacts. Any way you slice it, the risks far outweigh the rewards of looking creepy or cool. Getting an eye infection from contacts will never be worth it.

The Importance of a Prescription

So, are colored contacts safe? Unfortunately, buying poorly-fitting fake contact lenses can cause some pretty serious issues. But there’s another problem with buying decorative contact lenses from someone off the street. Since that person isn’t an eyecare professional, they likely can’t show you how to clean them properly. There’s also no guarantee they are clean in the first place. Wearing dirty contact lenses can also lead to bacterial infections that can progress rapidly into corneal ulcers and can make you go blind. These infections can be serious enough to cause you to go blind within a 24-hour period.

So, it’s not the novelty contact lenses themselves that are the problem. It’s the fact that they are used without a prescription. This means that they won’t be fit properly in the first place, and you won’t have any professional input on whether your eyes can handle the contacts. Everyone’s eyes are different, and without a proper consultation or follow-up care from an eye doctor, your eyes can easily get into trouble.

But, not all hope for a perfect Cosplay or Halloween costume is lost. When obtaining decorative contact lenses through an eye doctor who has given you a proper exam and prescription, these colored contacts can be just as safe to use as regular contact lenses. Of course, this is only true if they are cleaned, taken care of, and placed on the eyes properly. So yes, you can add some fun decorative lenses to your Halloween costume this year. Just make sure you go through the proper channels first.

Recommendations for Decorative Contact Lenses

If you want to wear decorative contact lenses, always get a professional eye exam performed by a licensed eye doctor. They will measure your eyes and ensure you get the proper size and shape for your prescription colored contacts. This will make sure you avoid the most prevalent dangers of contact lenses. Getting safe colored contacts isn’t impossible; you just need to put in a little effort and plan ahead.

Even after your initial fitting, you should continue to see your eye doctor for follow-up appointments. This will make sure the contact lenses are not causing any problems that you can’t see or feel. You’ll also be able to detect any issues that perhaps haven’t shown any symptoms yet, and mitigate any side effects.

Just like normal prescription contact lenses, you should also, of course, make sure you take care of your cosplay contacts properly. Clean your contacts daily with the proper solution. Keep them moist by soaking them in solution when they aren’t being worn. Read the care instruction manual that comes with your prescription colored contact lenses carefully. If you don’t have instructions for your contact lenses, ask your eye doctor for them.

Finally, if you have any kind of eye pain, redness, itching, or discharge in your eyes, remove the contact lenses and see your eye doctor immediately. As we said earlier, developing an eye infection from contacts or cuts and scrapes on your eyes can lead to serious vision impairments. The sooner you have your eyes cared for, the less likely you are to suffer any permanent vision loss. Treat your eyes with care, and you’ll have a better chance of having clear vision for life.

Reducing Eye Problems

Other than obtaining decorative contact lenses with a prescription and taking care of them properly, there are many other ways you can keep your eyes healthy. This will decrease your chances of developing infections, diseases, and disorders of the eyes.

While decorative contacts can be safe if you get them from an eye doctor, in our opinion, if you don’t actually need the contact lenses to improve your vision, it’s best just to avoid them altogether. Your eyes are important, and they should be treated with care and love.

As far as everyday vision improvement goes, we recommend that you ensure you are getting enough of the 17 vitamins and minerals essential for eye health. These vitamins and minerals will help to improve your ability to see at night. They can also reduce your risks of developing age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts, and other eye diseases. This will lower your risk of vision loss.

Take care of your eyes now so you can have strong, healthy vision for many years to come. Perhaps you can even have a little ocular fun at your next cosplay event.