Swimming and Contact Lenses: Essential Safety Tips for Your Summer Vacation

Summer vacations often include pools, beaches, lakes, water parks, and hot tubs. Contact lenses make it easier to enjoy outdoor activities without worrying about glasses slipping or fogging, but they require extra care around water. Swimming with contact lenses can expose the eyes to germs and increase the risk of irritation, corneal injury, and infection.

Why Water and Contact Lenses Do Not Mix

Pool water may contain chlorine, while lakes, oceans, and hot tubs can contain microorganisms and other contaminants. Even tap water is not sterile. When water becomes trapped between a contact lens and the eye, germs may remain against the cornea instead of being washed away naturally.

Water can also cause soft lenses to swell, change shape, or stick to the eye. This may lead to discomfort or small scratches on the cornea. One concern is Acanthamoeba keratitis, a rare but serious corneal infection associated with water exposure and contact lens wear.

The safest approach is to remove contact lenses before swimming, showering, entering a hot tub, or participating in other water activities.

Choose Safer Vision Options for Swimming

Prescription swimming goggles can provide clear vision while helping shield the eyes from water. They may be especially helpful for frequent swimmers and travelers planning snorkeling, boating, or other water-based activities.

Vacationers should also pack a pair of updated glasses for poolside and beach use. Keeping glasses nearby makes it easier to remove contact lenses before swimming without sacrificing clear vision during the rest of the day.

Pack a Contact Lens Travel Kit

A well-prepared travel kit can help you avoid unsafe shortcuts while away from home Include:
 

• Extra contact lenses in their original sealed packaging

• Backup prescription glasses

• Fresh contact lens disinfecting solution

• A clean contact lens case

• Lubricating eye drops approved for contact lens use

• Clean tissues or a lint-free towel for drying hands

Never rinse or store lenses in tap water, bottled water, pool water, or homemade saline. Use only the lens care products recommended by your eye doctor, and avoid topping off old solution in the case.

What to Do After Accidental Water Exposure

If you accidentally swim while wearing contact lenses, remove them as soon as possible with clean, dry hands. Daily disposable lenses should be discarded. Reusable lenses should be cleaned and disinfected overnight according to your eye doctor’s instructions before they are worn again. Do not immediately place a wet lens back into your eye.

Pay attention to eye redness, pain, light sensitivity, blurred vision, excessive tearing, discharge, or a persistent feeling that something is in the eye. Remove your lenses and contact an eye doctor promptly if any of these symptoms develop. Waiting for symptoms to improve on their own may allow an infection to become more difficult to treat.

Schedule a Contact Lens Exam Before Vacation

A contact lens exam can confirm that your prescription and lens fit are current before you travel. It is also an opportunity to discuss daily disposable lenses, prescription swimming goggles, backup eyewear, and eye drops that may be appropriate for your needs. For contact lens wearers in League City, planning ahead can make summer travel safer and more comfortable.

Dive into summer with clearer, safer vision and schedule your contact lens exam with Signature Eye Center in League City, TX, by calling (281) 337-3344 today.