Contact lenses have been around for decades now and many choose to ditch the lenses and undergo LASIK. However, there are those who do not want to go the extra mile to receive this procedure for a plethora of reasons. That being said, contacts are still very prominent, especially in the Gen X and Gen Y generations. According to All About Vision, there were about 39 million individuals in 2014 who wore contact lenses in 2014. The following distribution is as follows:
- 18 to 34 years old: 48 percent
- 35 to 44: 22.5%
- 45 to 54: 16.3%
- 55 or older: 13.2% (source)
However, many people have been ditching the monthly contact lenses and instead purchasing daily contacts. You might think, Well why? What’s so “cool” and beneficial about daily lenses? There are many advantages to using daily contact lenses (dailies). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that about 90% of contact lenses are improperly cared for (source). Because of this, many turn to wearing dailies to avoid the risk of infection and “overwear,” as well as them being low maintenance compared to that of extended use contacts, like monthlies. While extended wear contacts need to be flushed out by solution generally overnight, dailies wearers do not need to purchase any extra cleaning solution and discard the lenses after one day of use.
However, if you prefer to wear extended use contacts, a helpful tip is to purchase a hydrogen peroxide-based cleanser, which is way more effective and better for one’s health than a typical contact lens solution! It is important to note that if one chooses to use this cleanser, the contact lenses MUST be stored overnight.