The advantages of switching to contact lenses
Contact lenses have been available from optical practices for as long as the NHS has been operating their spectacle voucher scheme. They are steeped in history, with the first and most basic concept of a contact lens being credited to the great inventor, Leonardo da Vinci.
Whilst he was unable to produce a working contact lens, his understanding and hypothesis about a ‘bowl shaped’ device with variable water content is a premise that has remained throughout the development of the contact lenses manufactured today.
As with most things, technology in contact lens design is continuing to develop and evolve with the parameters of prescription ranges increasing and lens types expanding. Advancements in technology have allowed a variety of different materials to enter the market. These advancements offer more choice for potential contact lens wearers who previously may not have been able to switch to contact lenses due to allergy or prescription restrictions.
Contact lenses have many benefits. Most notably, they allow patients who have a higher prescription to experience the world without the weight and thickness of the lenses in their regular spectacles. It gives the wearer a natural all-around vision and an unrestricted field of view, as some spectacle wearers find the constraints of the spectacle frame restrictive.
Switching to contact lenses also means patients can partake in sporting activities without having to wear prescription goggles, or risk damaging their spectacles. You can also wear protective sports eyewear over contact lenses. If you do have to work your prescription into the lenses of your sports eyewear there’s only so much choice available. So if you wanted polarised sunglasses for fishing or specific tinted lenses for contrast when playing golf or shooting, you wouldn’t need to consider inserts or glazed gaskets.
Contact lenses can also be a simple solution when wearing sunglasses. You won’t have to change the prescription lenses in sunglasses or have to carry a pair of clear glasses to swap to each time you go inside. Just wear contact lenses and a non-prescription pair of sunglasses instead. You get protection from your sunglasses without the expense of prescription lenses.
For people with high prescriptions who may have been restricted as to the type of sunglasses they’re able, switching to contact lenses can open up a whole new selection of non-prescription sunglasses.
There are many different types of contact lenses available today. So whatever your prescription and your lifestyle needs, there is usually a contact lens solution. Whether you need a correction for single vision or multifocal wear, want daily use contact lenses for occasional or social wear or monthly lenses for continual use, contact lenses are a perfect addition to your portfolio of eyewear solutions.
A good analogy is to think of your eyewear requirements like shoes. You don’t wear the same pair of shoes for every daily task. You wouldn’t wear high heels to walk the dog across muddy fields or wear sandals to play golf in. And it’s similar for spectacles, sports eyewear and contact lenses. We should have different eyewear specifically for our individual needs or tasks.
Please get in touch with the Respectacle team if you would like to discuss your contact lens requirements. Give us a call on 01858 433577 or get in touch here.
