Contact lenses are the most effective method to improve your vision without affecting your appearance and without interfering with your daily activities. Today, there are an estimated 45 million contact lens wearers in the United States.
And if you are one of them, then you would need to replace your old pair of lenses with the new ones, regularly. If you have some doubts regarding contact lenses with no prescription, this article explores some aspects of the same.
What is a contact lens prescription?
A prescription for contact lenses is issued to you by your doctor, who has examined your eyes. The FTC defines prescription as something that helps the contact lens seller to give you a perfect match for your vision in the form of a contact lens. A prescription includes the patient’s name, examination date, issue, the expiration date of the prescription, power, and the appropriate design of the prescribed contact lens.
Do you need a prescription to buy contact lenses?
Indeed yes. But it is not essential for you to provide a prescription that is verified by your doctor. You need to hand over your copy of the prescription to your seller so that he can help you with a pair of contact lenses that are just perfect for your eyes. But, if your prescription includes all the above-mentioned details like your name, expiration date of the prescription, power, design, material, etc., you don’t need a prescription that is validated by a doctor.
What does the law say?
Issued in 2004, by the Federal Trade Commission, the fairness to contact lens consumers act abstains from the contact sellers from providing their customers with contact lenses without a valid prescription. To get a pair of contact lenses for yourself, you need to possess a prescription provided by a licensed Optometrist or an opthalmologist.
However, you can get contact lenses from international retailers that are not entirely bound to the rules and regulations set by your state. So, if you don’t have a verified prescription, you can try contacting a brand based in a country other than the US, say Europe, because that brand operates according to European laws.
What are the things to ensure that you get the best set of lenses for your eyes?
Contact lenses get in direct contact with your eyes, and the wrong pair can severely affect your vision. Here are a few things that you must take care of while purchasing a pair of contact lenses for yourself:
- Order your contact lenses from a verified and reputed retailer like contactlenses.co.uk. Contact lenses are complicated things, and one provided by an in-experienced and quack retailer can cause damage to your eyes when put on for too long.
- Do not frequently switch to different brands for contact lenses. The shape and water content of contact lenses vary widely for various manufacturers. Therefore, think before you purchase from a new brand.
- Request your manufacturer to help you with written instructions for the usage of contact lenses.