There is no right answer as to whether glasses or contact lenses are better, as it all comes down to personal preference. You must consider aesthetics, budget, convenience, comfort, and lifestyle when deliberating your preferred vision correction method. However, you do not need to commit to one vision correction solution and may chop and change between the two depending on your day-to-day requirements.
Pros of Glasses:
- Wearing glasses reduces the need to touch your eyes which decreases the possibility of contracting infections.
- Glasses do not aggravate dry or sensitive eyes.
- For a long-term solution, glasses are typically more affordable than contact lenses. You will only need to purchase new glasses upon your prescription changing and often you can replace the lenses in your current frames.
- Glasses are a fashion statement – a lot can be said about your style and personality through your glasses.
- Glasses can protect your eyes from wind, dust, and debris.
Cons of Glasses:
- Glasses sit roughly half an inch away from your eyes which can result in the distortion of peripheral vision. Additionally, some people find that when they initially start wearing glasses or get a new prescription, they struggle to focus on objects due to blurred vision as their eyes adjust.
- Some people dislike their appearance when wearing glasses and believe that they do not flatter or enhance their features.
- A strong prescription may result in thick lenses that distort your eyes and make them appear as magnified or minified.
- Your vision can be obstructed by water or fog gathering on the lenses when wearing glasses.
- Some frames can put pressure on your nose and ears which can result in headaches and other forms of discomfort.
Pros of Contact Lenses:
- Contacts mold to the arc of your eye which causes fewer vision distortions and provides a wider field of view.
- Contacts are ideal for exercising and playing sports.
- Contacts will not clash with your outfit.
- Contacts will not fog up or collect raindrops on their surface like glasses.
- You can purchase contact lenses of different colors which allows you to experiment with your eye color.
- Specialist contact lenses can reshape your cornea during sleep; overnight orthokeratology temporarily fixes myopia. This means that you can see clearly the following day without glasses or contacts.
Cons of Contact Lenses:
- Initially, people often have trouble applying and removing their contact lenses although this typically gets easier with practice.
- Contacts obstruct oxygen from reaching your eyes which can cause or worsen dry eye syndrome.
- Wearing contacts when regularly working with a computer can impact symptoms of computer vision syndrome.
- Contacts require sufficient care and cleaning every day to minimize the transmission of eye infections.
- If you fall asleep wearing your contacts, your eyes will become dry, gritty, red, and irritated.
Conclusion
Ultimately, you will have to assess your personal situation using the above information to decide whether glasses or contact lenses are best suited to you. As previously mentioned, you do not need to pick one form of eye correction and stick with it, and you can adapt your solution from day to day.
If you do decide to try out contact lenses, it is vital that you purchase them from a certified optician after an eye test. Do not opt for cheaper online solutions as this could result in irritation, infection, and in more severe cases, vision impairment or loss. Your eyes are extremely sensitive, and you should not subject them to anything unfamiliar in the absence of professional guidance. If you notice any changes to your eyesight, book an eye test with an optician.