The Risks of Sleeping with Your Contact Lenses In

If you are a contact lens wearer, the chances are good that you’ve fallen asleep with your lenses before. This is not something you want to make a habit of, because sleeping with your contact lenses in your eyes can lead to some serious eye health issues. Get into the habit of taking your contacts out at a certain time every day to avoid falling victim to the risks of sleeping with your contact lenses in. Below, we are going to let you know a little bit more about why you shouldn’t sleep with your contact lenses and how doing so can affect your eye health. Remember to reach out to AV Eyecare if you are interested in learning more about contact lenses or if you’d like an eye exam.

Risk #1 – Light Sensitivity and Eye Irritation

One of the risks of sleeping with your contact lenses is that you might have to deal with increased sensitivity to light and eye irritation the next day. Although these symptoms are not permanent, they can certainly make life uncomfortable while they persist. The thing to remember is that your eyes need oxygen to stay healthy. Sleeping with your lenses limits the amount of oxygen that your eyes can get and make your eyes more susceptible to bacteria and viruses. Make sure you are taking your contact lenses out each night to avoid these frustrating symptoms.

Risk #2 – Pink Eye

Another common risk associated with sleeping with your contact lenses is pink eye. This occurs when a viral infection develops and causes some very uncomfortable symptoms. Your eyes will get extremely red and itchy while your eyes are infected with this virus. Pink eye is extremely contagious and usually requires special eye drops to alleviate the issue. Anyone that has had pink eye before will tell you how uncomfortable it is, so make sure you keep this risk in mind the next time you consider sleeping with your contact lenses in. If you think you are dealing with pink eye, reach out to AV Eyecare today to get the professional medical attention you need.

Risk #3 – Corneal Neovascularization

As we mentioned earlier, when you sleep with your contacts in, you are depriving your eyes of oxygen. This can lead your eyes to grow additional blood vessels that help to keep blood flowing to the cornea. The increase in blood vessels will lead to impaired vision that prevents light from traveling to the cornea like it usually does. Corneal neovascularization is not fun to deal with, so make sure you take your contacts out each night before going to bed.

These are a few of the main risks associated with sleeping with your contact lenses in. The good news is that they are all easy to avoid if you commit to a regular routine of removing your contacts before bed. If you have any more questions about eye health or contacts, reach out to AV Eyecare today for assistance.