Simply answered, no, they don’t. However, if anyone has poor vision like I do, it really sucks to be without your contacts when you’re lounging by the pool. With summer around the corner I’m faced with this same issue that has been a problem for years. I’ve been told by my optometrist that wearing contacts into the pool is a big no no.
When I was younger, I was only taught the basic contact care protocol but there wasn’t much information provided as to lifestyle and contacts. Mom bought me my contacts and away I went. The ladies at the optometrist office just showed me how to put it in, pop them out and rinse them to store at night.
Since then I’ve learned about how bad it is to wear them for prolonged period of time, how we should never sleep with them, changing them out to dailies are much better for the overall health of your eyes and the list goes on and on. Of course now the new studies and research being released is wearing contacts in the water.
I remember going to my cousin’s house with my contacts and just jumping and diving into the pool with the contacts on. When everyone started playing games it was only necessary that I opened my eyes underwater in order to play with everyone else. Now years later, research has proven and shown just how bad that was to do! YIKES!!
Swimming with your contacts on can actually lead your contacts to get stuck somewhere in your eyeball! Good luck trying to fish it out. Blech. Not to mention how much your eyes burn after you get out of the pool. If you ever need bloodshot eyes, there’s a way to go! These are just the physical experiences that you could see and feel, but the real hidden dangers are the risks with bacterial contamination in the pool water and those germs transferring on to your contacts and living on your lenses or even worse, in your eye! If that doesn’t scare you, a survey of public pools consistently found traces of fecal matter. Where do you think the fecal bacteria travels to when you open your eyes underwater with your contacts on?
Feeling a little sick yet? The bacteria can lead to various eye infections, irritation and even threaten your eyesight itself! Solution? Remove your contacts before hitting the water, if you can bear it or switch over to disposable dailies so after you swim you can replace your lenses. There’s also the option of getting LASIK and just being done with contacts and glasses for good! But above all, contacts, LASIK or glasses, ALWAYS wear a pair of goggles when swimming because no one wants poo poo in their eye.
