Confidences and Worries

[Andrew MacLean]

A lot has to do with the mineral composition of the water that comes out of your tap.

I was told that in my part of the UK it was probably safe (if not advisable on a regular basis) to use tap water to rinse my RGP lenses. I was also told that under no circumstances should I use tap water to rinse fluid off the soft lens I was given.

In other parts of the United Kingdom people are told that tap water should not be used. The only difference I can see is that in my part of Scotland the water is fairly pure, with very few mineral salts dissolved in the public water supply. In places where the ground is rich in lime, the water has more minerals dissolved and it is not so good an idea to use it on lenses.

I know this does not come close to answering your question, except to say that your oculist probably knows your local conditions.

Andrew

[rosemary johnson]

Also the oculist told me that my Boston RGP lens can wash with tap water,whereas the soft lens can't. Is it true?

Regards
Banner

Yes, that is quite true. You mustn't use any fluids on soft lenses other than those intended for use with them. This is becaue the soft lens actually holds fluids as part of their structure, and if you put ordinary water - or for that matter, tea, gin, pineapple juice or unleaded petrol, on your lens, it will get taken up into the structure, and you'll get a rather nasty sensation when you next put it in!
Even ordinary water is not good - because the result with be a lens rich in fluid that doesn't "match" yur eye properly and will sting.

Yes, you can wash hard lenses in ordinary water - so long as the water is clean, and in particular doesn't have sand or other fine particles in it, as these could scratch the surface.
The purists will no doubt disagree! - and certainly it is a good idea to remove the water before you put the lens in - either by drying the lens carefully after you've washed it, or at least by rinsing the water away very thoroughly with saline.
i've always washed my lenses in water - normally tap water, though I have been in some parts of the world, or been in areas affected by water quality scares, when I've looked at what's coming out of the tap and decided to use water that's gone through a water filter jug, or even bought bottled mineral water. I've never had any problems with this - some people are far more prone to infections than me.
Rosemary