Contact Lenses For Children: Should Parents Allow It?

There are times when it is more beneficial for your children to wear contact lenses for their vision difficulties instead of wearing glasses. Even infants can be prescribed with contact lenses for certain vision conditions that may have been present at birth. Some babies are born with one eye or both that are underdeveloped and have a type of cataract. Many times, surgery is required. However, if the cataract is only a white dot on the eye, the ophthalmologist may have the infant wear contacts in order to dilate the eye to allow more light in and assist the eye to heal itself.

Many studies are being conducted where Rigid Gas Permeable contact lenses are used for children of any age who are suffering from myopia or nearsightedness. The results of those studies have been astounding. They are finding that myopia in children who wear the Rigid Gas Permeable lenses develops much slower than myopia in children who wear soft contact lenses or glasses. In fact, they are finding that Rigid Gas Permeable contact lenses may keep children's myopia from progressing as far as it normally would if the child only wore glasses.

Another great benefit for your children when wearing contacts instead of glasses is if they are active in sports. Besides allowing your child better vision than glasses, contact lenses are safer. There are no glasses to fog up and contribute to collisions. Glasses can also cause even more damage to your child's face if he or she is hit during a game. Glasses can fall off and get damaged. It is very hard for a properly fitted contact lens to pop off of the eye.

Deciding what age is best for your children to wear contact lenses is a mutual one made between your child, you and your ophthalmologist. There is no exact age when contact lenses are prescribed for children. Many factors contribute to this decision. How responsible is your child? If your child still needs to be reminded to complete nearly every daily task, then he probably isn't ready for contact lenses. Or, you may have a child who is very responsible, but lacks the delicate skills necessary to properly clean and store the lenses every night. For those children a doctor may prescribe daily wear disposable contact lenses. This way your child can take the lenses out every night, throw them away and put in a brand new pair the next day.

No matter what age your children are and no matter what level of responsibility they possess, it is always up to you, as the parent, to ensure that they are following the guidelines. Children must realize that if they don't clean their lenses properly or if they leave them in longer than is recommended they are jeopardizing the health of their eyes. Deciding on contact lenses for children isn't one that should be considered lightly. When everyone lives up to their responsibilities, this decision can have positive effects on one and all.

mark(at)contactlensesguideonline.com
by Mark Clifton