Have you ever run out of contact solution and used water instead?
Or worn a pair a few days longer than you were supposed to? You can admit it.
Lots of us have done it.
Here’s another question though.
Do you want your eye to look like this??
[WARNING: GROSS PICTURE in 3… 2… 1….]
Yeah, didn’t think so. Here’s why you should really, really, REALLY listen
to your eye doctors when they tell you how to take care of your contacts.
[Reactions Splash intro]
The CDC found that 99 percent of contact -wearing American adults have done
at least one of these bad things
[Scroll on screen: wash them in water, store them in water, touching them with
wet hands, wear them to bed, wear them swimming, wear them in the shower, not
getting a new case regularly, not cleaning your case, not throwing them away on
schedule, using the wrong solution, storing them in old solution].
Some people have stored their contacts in beer, baby oil or even butter,
which you should never, EVER do.
In the worst case a contact-lens-related infection can leave you blind, and usually
the problem starts with storing or cleaning contacts in water.
Even in places with safe, clean drinking water, there are a lot of bacteria and
other microbes swimming around.
Your stomach can handle most of them, and your eyes have evolved strong defenses
that can usually deal with them as well.
But wearing contacts puts your eyes at a biodefense disadvantage.
Scientists are still working to understand exactly why
contacts can impair the eye’s immune responses.
But they DO know that contacts interfere with the movement and mixing of tears,
which have their own antimicrobial properties and can boost the defenses of the thin
layer of cells that cover your cornea.
When microbes do make it into the cornea, they can
cause keratitis, an inflammation of the cornea.
This sometimes leaves scars which can permanently limit your eyesight.
For another reason why contact-wearers can have issues, here’s Anna from Gross Science.
Hi Anna!:
Anna: The material your contacts are made of is part of the problem too.
Early versions of contacts were made of glass, then
the hard plastic [PMMA] that is used in plexiglass.
Neither of these allow oxygen through to the eye, which isn’t good for your cells.
Modern soft contacts are usually made from hydrogels.
These polymer materials contain lots of water, a lot like your body’s tissues.
They also let oxygen through, which is good for the health of your eyes.
But their molecular architecture and water content also make them very attractive
to bacteria and other microbes.
That said, even people who open a new pair of lenses each day are susceptible to these
contact-lens-related infections, so doctors know
it’s not just about microbes that set up shop
on your contacts or in your case over time.
So follow these eye doctor-approved tips: Never let water and contacts mix.
Make sure to let your case air dry completely leave your case upside down to dry while you’re
wearing your lenses, and use new solution every time. What kind of solution?
Well, there are two kinds: hydrogen peroxide and multipurpose cleaners.
Hydrogen peroxide works pretty simply: it destroys microbes’ cell walls
by stealing their electrons.
Unfortunately, that means peroxide can also kill the cells in your eye.
So peroxide solutions come with a special lens
case that has a catalyst like platinum or
palladium that breaks the peroxide down into water
and oxygen before the lenses go back in your eye.
Multipurpose cleaners are newer and use more complex disinfecting agents
[polyhexamethylene biguanide or polyquaternium].
These molecules are potent enough to kill most tough bacteria
[Pseudomonas aeruginosa and other microbes], but
gentle enough not to hurt the eye, so they don’t
need to be broken down first like peroxides.
Some researchers question whether multipurpose cleaners are strong
enough and say peroxides may still be best.
According to the American Academy of Opthamology, “single-use daily disposable
lenses are the safest type of soft contact lens,
in terms of reducing the risk of infection.”
They also say modern hard contacts are a safer alternative than any type of soft contact lens
Your eye doctor can help you decide which type of lens is right for you.
But one last thing: Rub your contacts when you rinse them.
Some newer solutions are advertised as no-rub. But studies show some of them don’t dislodge
all the microbes and other stuff that can stick to your lenses.
So, ya gotta rub them the right way.
If bacteria aren’t rubbed off, they can form a biofilm across your lens.
Biofilms are polymers made from DNA and other molecules and studded with microbes, like
a gross microscopic slimy fruitcake, or a gross macroscopic fruitcake.
For example, the plaque on your teeth is a biofilm.
Bacteria that make it to the biofilm stage are dug in, making it much harder for your
immune system or disinfectants to fight them.
So better to rub away biofilms before they get a foothold.
Well. That’s enough science for me today.
Time to take out my contacts and get some shuteye.
Maybe tomorrow I’ll just switch to some fashion-forward frames.
Are you team glasses or team contacts, and why?
Let us know in the comments.
Fight it out. And while you fighting, follow us over to gross science to figure out what
happens when you don’t take care of your contacts properly.
Thanks to Anna Rothschild for hanging out with us!