Is it ok wearing contacts while swimming?!

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Is it safe? Probably.. I don't think it would do any harm to YOU, but chlorine and pool chemicals definitely aren't good for your contacts.. I have horrible vision too. My prescription is a -6.00. If I was in a pool by myself, such as my own pool or something, I'd probably wear my contacts.. if you're going to be in a public pool, or your friends like to have water fights & whatnot, I'd say wear glasses or just leave the contacts out for an hour or two. If having to replace them because you lost them or got too much chlorine in them or something isn't a problem, then go for it. As long as you have extra pairs just in case.

You can wear them in the pool, just make sure you don't open your eyes underwater. I wear contacts, and go swimming with them in all the time. Don't worry about getting splashed, but make sure you don't rub your eyes. You shouldn't rub your eyes while wearing contacts anyway. You don't have to throw the contacts out, just make sure you put them in the solution to clean them.

If you get chlorine in your eyes, you will damage your contacts and potentially your eye sight.
My biology teacher was in university doing an experiment for biochemistry. When they were boiling acid his peer was only wearing contacts. Anyhow, she got acid in her eyes and didn't take the contacts for the eye wash and the acid stayed behind the contacts and melted it to her cornea. I'm sure chlorine wouldn't have that kind of effect on contacts but just to be safe, I wouldn't wear them!
Hope it helps :)

I hope you brought a spare pair and can put them in when you're done swimming. If not, wear goggles over contacts. If no goggles, then take the contacts out. The eyes are a sterile system and contaminated contacts can cause an infection. It's not worth the risk. Just one small suggestion, get a box of daily contact lenses for times like these.

Yes, but only if you wear goggles when you swim. Also, if you know what your prescription is you can go to a local competition sports store and they will have prescription goggles you can use.

Best friend.

it's not ideal for the lenses (you'll be fine) - wear goggles on top.

another idea is prescription goggles.

Not a good idea, unless you have really good goggles that won't leak.

Girl it's still cold to go swimming! Lol but yes. Use goggles though

be carefull....use goggles...u dont want to be looking for a transparent half inch contact in the pool

You probably won't damage the lenses.

Ideally you shouldn't wear your contacts in the water, 1) they can fall out if you do happen to open your eyes underwater 2) they are a feeding ground for bacteria and such, you don't want stuff getting trapped between your eye and the contact lens.

If you are going to wear your contacts while swimming I recommend wearing goggles and also taking them out and cleaning them

Also recommended solution to use is Clear Care - it helps get a lot of the gunk off your contact lenses. (just be careful and read the directions)

Current optometry student

I've swum in contacts for 40 years. yes chlorine stings if it gets in your eyes and its slightly nore painful if you have contacts in. What you ahve to be careful of is infection. I use daily disposables rather than my fortnightlies if I'm going to swim so I can throw them out afterwards, or my fortnightlies if its the last day I wear them. I don't take my contacts out straight away, particularly if I'm swimming in teh sea as I'll get more than one swim.

Swimming is one of the chief things that lenses are good for so dont' let anyone put you off. Its one of teh places its made a real difference to me over the last 40 years as I love swimming, snorkelling etc.

You don't plan on going underwater, but you never know what might happen. Also, you might get splashed so that the contacts get washed out of your eyes.

A little exposure to the pool water itself won't damage the contacts, so you wouldn't have to worry about that. You only have to worry about them washing out of your eyes. You should wear goggles when you are going to be in close proximity to the water in case you do get a big splash in the face or somehow end up in the pool. You might not like that suggestion thinking you'll look stupid in the goggles, but that's the only way to be absolutely safe from accidents when you are right by the water.

Also, you should keep some saline rinse or eye drops made for contacts with you so that you can rinse any of the pool water out of your eyes if they get exposed to it.