This 1 Day by day Behavior Can Be Severely Harmful If You Put on Contacts

As a longtime contact lens wearer, I’ve typically felt assured in my understanding of eye well being and hygiene. I by no means sleep with my lenses in, all the time wash my fingers earlier than dealing with them and do my finest to exchange every pair with a brand new one on the beneficial time.

However once I got here throughout a Texas girl’s harrowing story on Instagram, I spotted I used to be fully blind to one other dangerous conduct, one which I do virtually each day: sporting contacts within the bathe.

“I went blind in one eye from showering in my contacts and had to get a cornea transplant,” Rachel Prochnow famous in a Reel she posted final month.

Because the Austin native shared on social media, she was recognized with a extreme parasitic eye an infection referred to as Acanthamoeba keratitis in July 2023, following weeks of visits with medical doctors who couldn’t establish why her eye instantly damage a lot.

The following months have been crammed with “excruciating” ache, out-of-town medical appointments, hourly eyedrops, costly and debilitating remedy, lack of imaginative and prescient and finally, a cornea transplant in the summertime of 2024, she stated.

Prochnow determined to share her story to lift consciousness across the risks of showering in your contacts, which she believes was the supply of the an infection.

“I didn’t know you weren’t supposed to do that. I had literally never ever been told you weren’t supposed to do that,” she stated in an Instagram video, including, “It can literally happen to anyone” who wears contacts.

So how precisely does showering in contacts trigger horrifying infections like Acanthamoeba keratitis? HuffPost requested eye well being consultants to interrupt down the dangers concerned and what it’s best to do as an alternative.

“Showering in contacts is risky,” Dr. James Kelly, an ophthalmologist and founding father of Kelly Imaginative and prescient, instructed HuffPost. “Tap water is not sterile and can contain harmful microorganisms, just like natural bodies of water.”

He emphasised that even transient publicity critically will increase your threat of an infection, which may result in extreme ache, everlasting scarring, lack of imaginative and prescient, corneal ulcers and extra.

“Wearing contact lenses in the shower isn’t as risky as swimming in them, but it’s still not recommended,” stated Dr. Maria Montero, the affiliate director of scientific providers at Orbis Flying Eye Hospital. “Water can introduce harmful bacteria and parasites, such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acanthamoeba, which can get trapped under the lenses.”

If these organisms adhere to your contact lenses, you’ll be able to develop a significant eye an infection like microbial keratitis, which can trigger imaginative and prescient loss if not addressed promptly. To make issues worse, these situations may be very tough to diagnose and deal with, significantly when you don’t reside close to a specialist accustomed to the vary of potential pathogens.

“Acanthamoeba protozoans or adenoviruses can be present in pools, seawater, hot tubs and showers,” defined Dr. Thomas J. Stokkermans, an optometrist and medical author and reviewer at All About Imaginative and prescient. “Serratia marcescens causes ‘pink mold’ that can be found in bathrooms. It can also survive in hot water such as in hot tubs and showers.”

He added that Pseudomonas aeruginosa can be current in showers, in addition to recent water in nature and inadequately chlorinated swimming pools and sizzling tubs.

“People have lost their eyes to waterborne infections,” Kelly famous. “The best practice is to remove your contacts before showering. If you absolutely must wear them, keep your eyes closed as much as possible and use preservative-free artificial tears afterward to flush out any potential contaminants.”

There are different dangers to showering in contacts past these painful and probably blinding infections.

“Water can alter the shape of soft contact lenses, making them uncomfortable or less effective,” Kelly stated.

Smooth contact lenses are porous, which makes them extra nice to put on but additionally causes them to soak up water shortly. So when you bathe together with your contacts in, the lenses can swell and alter form in order that they don’t match as nicely in your eyes and change into tougher to take away. Cue discomfort, blurry imaginative and prescient and dryness.

And it’s not simply the moisture that causes lens warping.

“Contact lenses are designed to be in the tear film, which has a certain salt concentration, which is called osmolarity,” Stokkermans stated. “Water with a different osmolarity can warp the lenses affecting the fit. This can irritate or damage the eye’s surface.”

“Bathwater can also contain bacteria, soap and shampoo residues that may get trapped under your lenses, leading to irritation or infection,” Kelly stated. “If you’re just lounging in a hot tub or taking a bath without submerging your head, the risks are lower than if you were swimming or dunking your face in the water, but there are still some concerns.”

Rubbing or in any other case touching your eyes with moist fingers from the bathtub may also introduce contaminants. The identical goes for splashing water in your face, whether or not deliberately or accidentally.

Kelly famous that there are different dangers past dangerous microorganisms and potential infections as nicely.

“Hot tubs and baths create a warm, humid environment that can dry out contact lenses, making them stick to the cornea and feel uncomfortable,” he stated.

Thus, there’s additionally a threat of corneal abrasions when you’re not cautious.

“The safest thing is to never wear contact lenses when swimming, in the shower or using hot tubs or other baths,” Stokkermans stated.

“It is imperative to avoid any type of interaction between water and your contact lenses,” stated Dr. Ella Faktorovich, a watch physician and founding father of Pacific Imaginative and prescient Institute. “This includes cleaning your contact lenses with tap water ― huge no-no.”

If water will get into your eyes throughout a bathe or tub when you’re sporting contact lenses, take them out after which clear your eye space with saline resolution or synthetic tears.

“Remove the contacts ASAP and discard them, and put in a fresh pair,” Faktorovich suggested.

You may additionally contemplate simply sporting your glasses for the rest of the day. For those who use month-to-month lenses, take the time to completely disinfect them.

“You should never rinse or store your contacts in tap water ― it’s not sterile and can introduce harmful microorganisms,” Kelly stated. “If you have frequent eye infections, consider switching to daily disposable lenses to minimize contamination risks.”

Take note of any points that come up following interactions between contact lenses in your eyes and faucet water from a bathe or tub.

“If you experience any sudden eye pain, redness, or blurry vision after water exposure, see an ophthalmologist ASAP,” Kelly suggested. “Early treatment is critical to preventing permanent damage.”

Basically, it’s best to ensure you’re disposing of your contact lenses on the beneficial timeline, whether or not that’s day by day, each two weeks or each month. Your eye well being just isn’t a spot the place you wish to stretch boundaries, so simply attempt to comply with all of the beneficial practices.

“The biggest risks for contact lens wearers come from bad hygiene habits — such as sleeping in contacts, not washing and drying hands before handling them, or using anything other than contact lens solution to clean and store them,” Montero stated. “To help keep your eyes safe, always remove your contacts before bed, clean them properly, check them for tears, and keep the storage case extremely clean to prevent contamination.”