I sometimes wear contact lenses and wonder is it safe to wear contact lenses in a pool or hot tub?
A quick search of the medical and optical sites all recommend to not wear contact lenses in a pool or hot tub. The reasons are primarily due to the heightened risk of eye irritation from the pool chemicals and infection from bacteria and other contaminants in the water.
People who wear contact lenses go about their daily activities and forget they are wearing them. It’s easy to get into a swimming pool or hot tub and forget about your eyes.
I always remove my contact lenses before swimming in the pool. I know not to expose the lenses to water and chlorine. If you open your eyes underwater the lenses may lose their surface tension and wash out of your eyes.
However, I have worn contact lenses in a hot tub with no issues. As long as you don’t put your head under the water there should be no problem. I use disposable contact lenses so I don’t care if I damage the lenses. These lenses are thrown away at the end of the day anyway. I do care about my eyesight and would never put myself at risk of infection.
Table of Contents
Types of Contact Lenses
Disposable Soft Contact Lenses
Disposable soft lenses are the most popular and widely used lenses particularly with young people. The lenses are very thin and soft so you hardly know they’re in your eyes. Disposable contact lenses cost about $1 per lens but you do not need to clean them so you save on cleaning and storage fluids.
These lenses typically supply in a box of 30 lenses to last one month.
Daily contact wearers insert new lenses in their eyes in the morning and take them out at night. They discard the lenses in the rubbish. The lenses are great for irregular wearers of lenses. Wear the lenses when going out or playing sport.
Reusable Soft Contact Lenses
Reusable Soft Lenses can be weekly lenses, monthly lenses and some last a year. Remove these lenses at night, clean and store in saline solution. The lenses are more expensive than disposable lenses but you wear them for a longer period of time. However, you need to clean and store the lenses on removal which is a nuisance at night. And of course you spend money on cleaning and storing solutions.
Gas Permeable Hard Contact Lenses
The most common type of hard contact lens is a rigid gas-permeable (RGP) lens. Gas permeable lenses are made from hard plastic and allow air to permeate through the lens to the cornea. This helps prevent the eye from being starved of oxygen. They are better for people with astigmatism because the lens holds its shape better than soft lenses.
Hard Contact Lenses
Hard contact lenses are made from hard plastic and are very old fashioned. Not many people wear hard lenses these days.
It is not recommended to sleep with any type of contact lenses as the eye becomes dry and irritated.
Can You Wear Contact Lenses in a Pool?
Research any official medical website and the advice is to not wear contact lenses while swimming in a pool or any water. The reasons are as follows:
- Contact lenses have a high water content and are porous. A contact lens will absorb water from a pool or spa damaging the lens.
- Pool and spa water contains chemicals that will damage the lens.
- When a lens absorbs water it will change shape causing eye irritation.
- When your eyes are open underwater the lenses will lose surface tension which hold the lenses to the cornea. Exposure to water will wash the lenses from the surface of the eyes.
- The porous nature of the lens will allow bacteria and contaminants to attach to the lens or slip between the lens and your eye. This leads to eye irritations and infections.
I agree with not wearing contacts while swimming. When you swim in a pool you are likely to put your head in the water or dive underwater. If the contacts get wet you expose your eyes to health issues and damage the lenses. I don’t even wear contacts in the shower because it’s too easy to get your eyes wet or worse get shampoo in your eyes which will damage contact lenses.
The only safe way to swim with contact lenses is to wear swimming goggles.
Does chlorine damage contact lenses?
Yes. Contact lenses are very delicate, thin and porous to provide a very comfortable wearing experience. Chlorine is a highly reactive chemical that will damage contact lenses. If you are wearing disposable contacts it doesn’t matter because you will dispose the lenses at the end of the day. However, you don’t want to get chlorine (and other pool chemicals) in your eyes as it may cause irritation or an eye infection.
Can you open your eyes underwater with contacts?
No. Surface tension holds the lens to the cornea. Contact lenses are hydrated and very porous so they will absorb water and lose surface tension causing the lens to wash out of your eye.
Can You Wear Contact Lenses in a Hot Tub?
Medical websites do not recommend wearing contact lenses in a Hot Tub or Spa Pool.
However, I wear contact lenses and have worn them in a hot tub with no problems. I highly recommend you do not put your head underwater while wearing contact lenses. The only issue I know of is the level of humidity from a hot tub may dry out your eyes and cause the lenses to become an irritation. A couple of drops of refresh eye drops will fix the problem.
I don’t recommend putting your head underwater in a public hot tub or spa pool even if you don’t wear contact lenses. There is a health risk of bacteria or viruses entering your nose, mouth and ears while in spa water. Unless it’s your own hot tub you don’t know whether the tub filter has been cleaned regularly. And you don’t know if the level of sanitation is adequate for the amount of use.
If you are wearing contacts in a hot tub and water splashes into your eyes remove the contacts. Wash your eyes with eye drops to clear away any contaminants that may have entered your eyes.
Please read our post on Hot Tub Safety
Can You Wear Contact Lenses in the Sea?
Again the official response is to not wear contacts in any water.
Many people wear contact lenses at the beach and in the water. I believe it’s safe if you are careful to not put your head underwater and not splash your eyes.
I only recommend wearing disposable contacts at the beach. And always be prepared to remove the lenses if they get wet or become an irritation.
Does Salt Water Damage Contact Lenses?
Contact lenses are porous and will absorb saltwater. The lenses will become tighter and uncomfortable in the eye. The lens will cause irritation and be more difficult to remove from the eye.
Can You Wear Contact Lenses Surfing?
Many people wear contact lenses while surfing. As a contact lens wearer myself, I would only recommend wearing disposable contact lenses while surfing. If you get the lenses wet or damage the lenses it doesn’t matter because you throw them away after surfing. Disposal contact lenses cost about $1 each and are discarded at the end of each day.
The most important thing is to close your eyes when underwater to prevent sea water getting into your eyes. Opening your eyes underwater will expose the lenses to contaminants in the water which may attach to the lenses or worse become lodged between your cornea and the lens.
After surfing remove the lenses and put a couple of drops in each eye to rinse any contaminants from your eyes.
Can you go snorkeling with contact lenses?
Medical advice will say no but I have been snorkeling with contact lenses and had no problems. As long as you don’t get water in your eyes it’s fine.
A better solution is to buy a mask or goggles with a lens prescription ground into the glass. Now you don’t need to wear contact lenses while snorkeling.
Can you wear contacts while scuba diving?
Some people wear contacts while scuba diving even though it is not advisable by medical authorities. The only issue I know is if your mask is knocked off or becomes flooded with water you need to keep your eyes tightly closed. All divers learn how to clear water from a flooded mask by blowing through their nose. If your eyes are exposed to water I recommend terminating the dive and removing the lenses to reduce the risk of infection. Flush your eyes with eye drops to remove contaminants and rehydrate your eyes.
Prescription Swim Goggles
There is an alternative to wearing contact lenses when swimming or diving.
Please read our article on Prescription Swim Goggles
Conclusion
Generally, medical authorities do not advise wearing contact lenses in a pool or any circumstance that involves swimming, soaking in a spa, surfing, snorkeling or diving. If you get water in your eyes you run the risk of developing an eye infection that will require medical treatment. Your eyes are very important and you should never take risks with them.
When snorkeling or scuba diving it’s better to use a mask or goggles with a lens prescription ground into the glass.
