In this section you will find simple information about anything that is worn to aid vision.
Spectacles and contact lenses can be bought cheaply over the internet or even from some shops, but just because your 'i'-care professional makes the selection of 'i'-wear look easy don't assume it is.
Spectacle frames that don't fit will never give comfortable vision. You may not realise it but when your 'i'-care professional helps you decide on which frames and lenses to select s/he is making decisions as to whether or not your choice will give comfortable vision. As part of this decision making process both the optometrist and the dispensing optician will measure the distance between the centres of your pupils (PD). This may appear to be a simple measurement but it's accuracy is essential for comfortable vision. Your ECP has to take into account several factors when instructing their spectacle manufacturing laboratory what the required PD, or the specified lens centre distance, is. The PD measurement is not part of your spectacle prescription as when specifying the exact measurement knowledge of the wearer's frame, lenses and lifestyle needs to be considered.
The actual fitting of Contact Lenses to most eyes is straight forward using modern lenses. The difficult bit is ensuring that your eyes retain good vision and that you follow advice on looking after your eyes to keep them healthy.
On-line Contact Lens suppliers can charge less for your contact lens products because;
- they do not need to pay for expensive equipment to make sure that your eyes can wear your contact lenses comfortably and safely throughout your lifetime.
- they have considerably lower overheads
- and they do not have to take responsiblity for helping you retain useful vision if 'the worse case scenario' happens.
Your ECP may appear to charge more for your contact lens products because;
- they want you to have regular eye examinations so they try to keep the cost of consultations down by loading some of this cost onto your contact lens products.
- they need to pay for expensive equipment, ongoing education and professional insurances to make sure that your eyes can wear your contact lenses comfortably and safely throughout your lifetime.
Wearing your lenses as instructed and seeking professional advise if your eyes are irritable, blurry or red should ensure care-free lens wear. Unfortunately if you can not afford regular eyecare you should reconsider whether wearing contact lenses is the right choice for you.
Many people don't wear Sunnies or sunglasses as often as they should. Sometimes this is because they have found them uncomfortable in the past. This maybe because the fit/style was wrong or the lenses had defects or distortions. Paying a lot of money for a pair of Designer Sunnies does not guarantee top-of-the-range protective lenses. Your Eyecare professional can help you select comfortable frames and advise you on the best sun-protective lenses for your needs.