Popular Colored Contact Lenses
Thursday, April 22nd, 2010What are your color options when purchasing colored contact lenses?
No longer just for theatrical
actors, colored contact lenses are now becoming a favorite among consumers
as a non surgical cosmetic enhancement. There are basically three kinds of
colored contact lenses that are available in the market today and they are
categorized based on the amount of tint they contain visibility, enhancement
and opaque color tints. The visibility tint does not change the colors of the eyes
because the tint used is very light and simply makes the colored contacts
more visible to the user. On the opposite side of the range are the opaque
color tints which are purposefully used to change eye color using solid
patterns of colors that are deeper in tint than the visibility type color
contacts. The enhancement tint type lies in between it does
not change eye color since the tint is translucent but is has solid color
tints.
Colored contacts for Astigmatism
Most of the colored contact lenses are not corrective in nature but there
are also those that are manufactured with corrective powers for astigmatism
or for those that need prescription glasses with bifocal needs.
The Food and Drug Administration has regulated the issuance and use of
colored contact lenses since they have been found to pose risks of blindness
and certain injuries to the eyes. You
now need a doctor’s prescription to purchase color contacts. Sharing or swapping
contact lenses are a bad idea too since this can be the cause of
transmission of eye infection regardless of whether they are tinted or not.
Why is a color contact lens more expensive?
There are several reasons why color contact lens is more expensive
than the regular contacts. Additional expenses for
color contacts come from added research done by manufacturing companies.
Aside from
sacrificing economies of scale because of lesser production quantities of
colored contact lenses, the tinting process is an added procedure during
production.
If you so decide that you want to change the way you look, changing your
eye color is a very dramatic way of doing it. Colored contact lenses are produced to
change eye color but manufacturers try to make it look as natural as
possible and allow you to still be able to see. This is done by only tinting the area where the iris is located
and the pupil area is kept clear for visibility. Just like
other cosmetic changes, there are disadvantages to these kinds of contacts.
When you blink, for instance, there is a possibility that a portion of the
colored area may move toward your pupil causing portions of your vision to
become blocked or blurry. Depending on the varying light available, the
pupil sizes change specifically enlarging during nighttime while the clear
area allocated for pupils of these contacts remain constant. In situations such
as these, you might experience problems with your vision. It is always
best, however, to consult your doctor regardless of the situation.