The Many Types of Color Contact Lenses

October 27, 2008 | By In Beauty, Health |

Colored contacts permit a person to enhance, or even change, his or her eye color. Until 2005, buying colored lenses did not require a prescription. However, the purchase of a color contact lens now requires a prescription due to numerous incidents of adverse effects, and the potential for serious eye injury. These adverse events were caused by improper fit, defective manufacturing, misuse, and the transfer of of harmful bacteria.

Therefore, the color contact lens is no longer classified as an unregulated cosmetic device. They are regulated by the FDA as medical devices regardless of whether or not the contact lenses provide any vision correction. Merchants who sell the color contact lens in the U.S. without requiring a prescription are in violation of the law.

Because of the risk of infection, cosmetic contacts shouldn’t be shared among friends, or used by kids without proper professional advice. Cosmetic contacts must be cleaned and maintained with the same diligence and care as corrective contacts, including appropriate disinfection, routine cleaning, and careful storage between use.

As with corrective lenses, coloured contacts are available in a variety of forms from twenty-four hour lenses to monthly lenses. Some coloured contact lenses have additional protection against harmful ultraviolet radiation from sun. Colored lenses vary from regular corrective vision contact lenses in the addition of tints to the region of the contacts overlaying the iris. The iris is the naturally colored, circular part of the eye surrounding the dark pupil where light enters. Four different types of tints are added.

A “visibility tint” simply makes the contacts more visible for easier insertion and removal. Visibility tints do not alter the eye color. Somewhat more pronounced in color, “enhancement tints” are made to enhance the natural color of the iris. Enhancement tints are often used by folks with lighter colored irises who wish to intensify their natural color.

The “color tints” are intense tints designed to dramatically change the color of the iris. Colored tint lenses are used for completely changing a person’s eye color, as a someone might change her hair color. These contact lenses are also commonly used with holiday theatrical costumes, Halloween costumes, and sporting-event fan costumes.

The last category of lens tints, the “light-filtering tints”. They make objects of certain colors stand-out in bright light. These contact lenses are employed much like vision-enhancing sunglasses.

Whether a someone’s reason for using contact lenses is mainlycosmetic, purely medical, or a mix of both, receiving a proper examination and prescription from a licensed professional is a critical first-step to ensuring long-term enjoyment of the product without risking damage to the eye.