Why You Still Need Reading Glasses with Your Contact Lenses

Even though your contact lenses purportedly provide you with 20/20 vision, do you still find yourself needing to squint to read your newspaper? Every morning, you faithfully put your contact lenses in, only to find that once you arrive at work, the font of your documents seems to be growing smaller and fuzzier. When you take the love of your life out to your 20th anniversary dinner, you find you can barely read the menu, and you keep your fingers crossed and order filet minion, hoping that is what you guess-read on the menu.

If this sounds like you, then you are joining a large group of people who face the symptoms of presbyopia, a condition that afflicts people over the age of 40. Unfortunately, your traditional contacts are unable to help you, and even today’s “advanced” techniques of alleviating presbyopia still fall short of the corrective power of reading glasses.

Multifocal contact lenses still require glasses
In recent years, manufacturers have developed multifocal contact lenses to help people who are afflicted with presbyopia. Available in both soft and hard lenses, these multifocal contacts are meant to help you see both near and far. However, according Primary Care Optometry News, many patients struggle with multifocal lenses, the fit, and how well the lenses even help with vision. For many patients, this results in a waste of money for the eye exam, follow-up visits, and fitting fees.

In addition, optometric professionals urge their patients to have realistic expectations with multifocal contact lenses. Even though there have been advancements, multifocal contacts cannot match the clarity you enjoy with your reading glasses. In addition, even with multifocal contacts, optometrists caution that it is highly likely you will still need another pair of glasses for nighttime driving and reading of print.

Why monovision contact lenses are not much better
For those patients who cannot use multifocal contacts, some doctors may suggest monovision contact lenses for presbyopia. In this circumstance, your contact lenses have two different powers; one eye will help you see far, while the other eye helps you see near.

However, monovision contact lenses present several problems for wearers because your eyes do not work together. When your eyes cannot work together like “binoculars,” your vision will have to compensate in other areas. For example, to see objects or print correctly, you may be forced to rotate your head, until your correct eye can see with the appropriate depth. In addition, some patients find that with monovision contact lenses, they lose some of their depth perception, which can be both frustrating and dangerous. Other patients find they see double vision, especially at night.

Reading glasses are still the best option for clear vision
Despite these “medical advancements,” there is nothing comparable to the benefits and clarity of reading glasses. With reading glasses, you can see close-up clearly, whether it's day or night—and you do not risk any eye damage or infection that is common with contact lenses. In addition, reading glasses are much more affordable (not to mention stylish and attractive!) than contact lenses, which are not only expensive, but have the propensity to tear, rip, and scratch.

Instead of wasting your time and money—and risking your eye’s health —on contacts that still require you to wear glasses, opt for a stylish, flattering pair of reading glasses that will be great on your eyes and wallet!

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The material provided on this site is for informational purposes only. It is not meant to replace the advice of your eye care professional. Have your eyes examined regularly and always follow your eye care professional's instructions. If you experience any pain, discomfort, or visual distortion, consult your eye care professional immediately.