Are Contact Lenses Safe For Kids?

In a word – yes! Contact lenses have come a long way ...............they’re easy to use, made of soft, breathable material to keep the eyes comfortable and most of all, they are leading the way in helping kids manage eye conditions like myopia.Children as young as 8 can manage contact lens wear with parent/caregiver supervision and for teens, contact lenses can be life-changing for vision and self-confidence.

Daily disposable soft contact lenses are most commonly prescribed and the beauty of these beauties is that they are single use lenses – they go in the bin at the end of the day. The ever so slight risk of eye infection is drastically reduced to something like 2 in 10,000 patient wear years. What does that mean? Well, if your child was to wear their contact lenses for 10,000 years (extremely unlikely!) she or he may suffer 2 eye infection events. These stats go to the heart of the benefit of daily disposable contact lenses.

But what about age? Aren’t teenagers the ones best suited to contact lenses? Latest research suggests that 8-12 year olds are tops when it comes to safer soft contact lens wear and this is being put down to closer parent/caregiver supervision, especially around routines and hand hygiene. Contact lenses continue to be a fantastic option for teens but they may need a bit more reminding around routines and cleanliness (just add it to the list of all the other reminders!).

At Outlook Eye Centre, we’re always here to answer your questions so please get in touch if you’d like to discuss contact lenses for your child.