People love contact lenses for their convenience, great vision, and appearance, especially those with a desire to live without glasses! However, people who develop Dry Eye Disease (DED) may find contact lenses uncomfortable to wear. They can exacerbate the gritty, gummy, scratchy symptoms of DED. Fortunately, simple-to-use home treatments for Dry Eye can help people manage those symptoms and enable people to continue wearing their contact lenses.
Can Wearing Contact Lenses Cause Dry Eye Disease?
Whether the use of contacts directly leads to chronic DED, there is certainly a link between the two. This is particularly true for older contact lens wearers. When this happens, as much as 50% of contact lens wearers stop using contacts to relieve the discomfort of Dry Eyes.
But, the most common cause of DED is Meibomian Gland Dysfunction (MGD). So, many of the people struggling with contact lens discomfort can find relief with simple home treatments! MGD frequently manifests as people grow older and Meibomian glands secrete their oil less easily. This is often due to thickened oils or eventually clogged ducts. Additionally, evidence suggests that wearing contact lenses is associated with a lower number of functional Meibomian glands.
How Contact Lens Wearers Can Manage Dry Eye
Treating Meibomian Gland Dysfunction may be the best first step to resolve gritty, dry, gumming symptoms when wearing contact lenses. A great way to accomplish this is with daily use of warm eye compresses to keep the glands working properly. Applying a daily heat treatment decreases thickness of oils and unclogs gland ducts. This facilitates getting the proper amount of oil flowing to restore the proper mix of water, oil and mucus that healthy tears need. This method for relieving dry eye symptoms is also a safe, effective technique that can be done easily at home or while traveling.
Since applying heat is a vital aspect of eyelid hygiene for those with MGD, finding the most effective treatment method is vital. EyeGiene® Insta-Warmth System with Warming Wafers is one of the best home treatments for dry eye. If you wear contact lenses and suffer from DED, it is time to discover the relief that EyeGiene has to offer!
Daily Warm Compresses May Help Ease Contact Lens Discomfort
People generally wear contact lenses for personal rather than medical reasons. So, the onset of Dry Eye can lead to much frustration and concern. But, Dry Eye sufferers can treat the symptoms of their condition to allow them to continue wearing contacts.
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