No Rub No More – A guide to healthy contact lens wear
For the past few years, contact lens solution manufacturers have led us to believe that we don’t need to scrub our lenses. With the recent outbreak of infections and recalls of popular solutions such as Complete Moisture Plus and Renu with Moistureloc, it appears that solution companies are backing down. What does this all mean to you? Rub your contact lenses before putting them away for the night. This is most important for monthly disposable lenses and especially those made of silicone-hydrogel materials. If you wear Purevision, Acuvue Advance, Night and Day, O2Optix or Biofinity lenses, you should have a thorough cleaning routine for your lenses.
The reason is that silicone hydrogel lenses, while extremely healthy for your eyes, tend to attract a build-up of protein deposits. Rubbing your lenses at night will reduce this buildup and keep your lenses cleaner for longer.
Even if your lenses are not silicone hydrogel, rubbing them every night should be part of your routine.
Have you ever read the instructions for a “No Friction” solution? They instruct you to rinse each side of each lens with a steady stream of solution for 10 seconds. That’s 10 seconds on 2 sides of each lens, 2 lenses each. What they want you to do is rinse your lenses for 40 seconds with a steady stream of solution? And how much solution do they expect you to buy? And how many people actually do that?
Rubbing your lenses only takes a few drops of solution. After washing your hands, place the lens in your palm with a small puddle of solution. Rub your lens from the center to the outside for at least 10 seconds. Never rub your lenses in a circular motion as this can tear and distort your lenses. Then just give the lens a quick rinse with the solution and place it in its case.
Always use clean fresh solution to store your lenses and let them soak for at least 6 hours for optimal cleaning.
That is all. The next morning, you can rest assured that the lenses you put back on your eyes are clean and healthy. You only get a few eyes in life, do your best to keep them healthy.
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