Is it Harmful if You Sleep With Contacts In?

You have probably been in this situation before — falling asleep with your contact lenses in during a long movie, staying overnight somewhere without your contact case and solution, or even taking a quick nap while still wearing your lenses.

It might not seem like a big deal to sleep in your contact lenses, especially if you’ve done it before without any noticeable issues. However, the truth is that sleeping in your contact lenses can be harmful to your eyes. Here’s why.

The Science Behind Why You Should Avoid Sleeping in Contacts

With every blink, your cornea and tear film absorb oxygen from the air to stay healthy. When you wear contact lenses, they shift slightly — about a millimeter — with each blink, allowing oxygen to pass through to the cornea. This oxygen is essential for providing the nutrients your eyes need to remain clear and healthy.

When you sleep in your contacts, the lens does not move, and because you are not blinking, this inhibits nutrients and oxygen from entering the cornea. The lack of oxygen can lead to the cornea developing tiny blood vessels that can grow onto the cornea and damage it by causing persistent inflammation, irritation and scarring, potentially leading to vision loss.

Sleeping in contacts can also trap microbes and bacteria from the lenses or your surroundings, creating the perfect environment for them to multiply overnight. By blocking oxygen and nutrients from reaching the cornea, the contact lens acts as an incubator for bacteria while you sleep. This can lead to serious complications, such as infections or even a corneal ulcer, which can be vision-threatening and may require a corneal transplant to treat.

Are You Willing to Lose Your Vision?

As a testament to the severity and dangers of sleeping in contacts, read a real-life example of a bride who could not see out of her eyes on her wedding day due to years of sleeping in her contacts.

The good news is this bride regained her vision over two months, although her vision is still poor.

The bad news? The bride had to wear sunglasses throughout her entire outdoor wedding due to light sensitivity, had to cancel her honeymoon, and went four days without sleep because she had to apply eye drops every 30 minutes for four days straight to save her vision.

The Truth About Contact Hygiene

A study conducted by the CDC reported that 99% of contact lens wearers interviewed had at least one poor hygiene habit that put them at increased risk for eye infection:

• 50.2% slept overnight in contact lenses
• 87.1% napped in contact lenses
• 55.1% topped off their existing contact solution with a new solution
• 84.9% showered in contacts
• 61.0% swam in contact lenses

Each time you sleep in your contacts, you decrease corneal nerve sensation. So, even though it may appear OK since you do not feel uncomfortable in the morning, you are still causing damage to the cornea.

This is why continued eye exams (especially for contact wearers) are critical to keeping your corneas and eyes healthy. The next time you don’t feel like taking out your contact lenses to sleep, think again!