Protect Your Eyes

You only have one pair of eyes, so take care of them! Healthy Habits = Healthy Eyes.

Enjoy the comfort and benefits of contact lenses while lowering your chance of complications. Failure to wear, clean, and store your lenses as directed by your eye doctor raises the risk of developing serious infections. Your habits, supplies, and eye doctor are all essential to keeping your eyes healthy. Follow these tips.

Hard contact lens wearers, the following wear and care recommendations for soft contact lenses also apply to hard, or rigid gas permeable (RGP or GP), contact lenses. For some extra tips, see additional tips below.

Your Habits

Wash your hands with soap and water. Dry them well with a clean cloth before touching your contact lenses every time.

Don't sleep in your contact lenses unless prescribed by your eye doctor.

Keep water away from your contact lenses. Avoid showering in contact lenses, and remove them before using a hot tub or swimming.

Why? Read the science behind the recommendations.

Your Supplies

Your Contact Lenses

Rub and rinse your contact lenses with contact lens disinfecting solution—never water or saliva—to clean them each time you remove them.
Never store your contact lenses in water.
Replace your contact lenses as often as recommended by your eye doctor.

Your Contact Lens Case

Rub and rinse your contact lens case with contact lens solution—never water—and then empty and dry with a clean tissue. Store upside down with the caps off after each use.
Replace your contact lens case at least once every three months.

Your Contact Lens Solution

Don’t “top off” solution. Use only fresh contact lens disinfecting solution in your case—never mix fresh solution with old or used solution.
Use only the contact lens solution recommended by your eye doctor.

Why? Read the science behind the recommendations.

Your Eye Doctor

Visit your eye doctor yearly or as often as he or she recommends.

Ask your eye doctor if you have questions about how to care for your contact lenses and case or if you are having any difficulties.

Remove your contact lenses immediately and call your eye doctor if you have eye pain, discomfort, redness, or blurred vision.

Why? Read the science behind the recommendations.

Be Prepared

Carry a backup pair of glasses with a current prescription—just in case you have to take out your contact lenses.

Additional Tips for Hard, or Rigid Gas Permeable (RGP), Contact Lens Wearers

The wear and care recommendations for soft contact lenses also apply to hard, or rigid gas permeable (RGP or GP), contact lenses. Here are a couple of extra tips:

To clean hard contact lenses, rub and rinse them with contact lens cleaning or multipurpose solution—never water or saliva—each time you remove them. Rinse them well with the solution recommended by your eye doctor.
Hard contact lenses can last much longer than soft contact lenses if cared for properly. Replace your hard contact lenses when recommended to do so by your eye doctor.

Visit CDC's Vision Health Initiative website for additional tips to protect your eyes.