Can Diabetics Wear Contacts?
Do you have diabetes? Does this make you unsure of whether or
not you can wear contact lenses? Well you're not alone. Diabetes
is well known for causing many vision related problems,
including fluctuating vision and blindness. With such serious
complications occurring in a diabetic eye, why add contact
lenses and their associated complications to the mix?
In fact, many diabetics can and have been successfully wearing
contact lenses. Studies have shown that current soft contact
lenses are acceptable for patients with diabetes. All that is
required, however, is the understanding that people with
diabetes can't wear their contacts as often as non-diabetics and
that diabetics have to be a little bit smarter about taking care
of their contact lenses. There are two main reasons for this:
1. The cornea (which is the transparent surface on the
front of the eye) in diabetics has decreased sensitivity. What
this means is that a diabetic patient will become aware of any
problems with their contact lenses much later than a person with
normal corneal sensitivity.
2. Diabetics tend to recover and heal more slowly.
This combination of having a slower reaction time and a slower
healing response can potentially lead to much more serious
contact lens complications in a diabetic compared with a
non-diabetic.
If you have either type 1 diabetes or type 2 diabetes and wish
to wear contact lenses, the first step is to visit your
optometrist. Your eye doctor will be able to determine which
contact lenses are most suitable for you. You will also be
provided with an appropriate wearing schedule that will ensure
that your eyes are remaining healthy while you are wearing the
contact lenses. Don't give up on contact lenses before you even
consider them!