As a younger lad, I never experienced any problems regarding my sight. Like a lot of children, I played an awful lot of sports, including high contact sports such as football and rugby, and reveled in delight at being able to sit at the back of the classroom and chat whilst still being able to read the blackboard at the front. It wasn't until the age of 14 that my eyesight began to deteriorate and I became short-sighted, and as soon as the realisation dawns that you will sooner or later require help to see the things you earlier took for granted, panic takes hold.

I really think the decision between glasses and contact lenses is a personal choice and depends heavily on each individual's personal circumstances. For example, a child who experiences eyesight deterioration at a young age will probably have glasses rather than contact lenses, as there is no need to try and teach a youngster to put contact lenses in their own eyes. A child in their mid teens going through secondary school should probably choose contact lenses for a number of reasons. At school, it is compulsory to attend physical education lessons and these could become difficult whilst wearing glasses. Also, if a child of such an age suddenly begins to wear glasses, it could provoke a reaction from other pupils and even in certain cases, lead to bullying.

Moving into adulthood, I think that the choice becomes slightly less pressured by other people, and is more related to the lifestyle of the individual in question, and the money available to them. For example, a man in his thirties begins to suffer from short sight, however, he earns well and doesn't want the inconvenience of either glasses or contact lenses and so decides to have eye laser surgery. I think as prices for these procedures continue to fall, more and more people will begin to move towards it as a viable option, and who knows, in many years to come, even make glasses obsolete - a thing of the past.

As it stands now however, the two most common methods of combating poor eyesight are glasses and contact lenses. Placing aside the social consequences, personal circumstances and lifestyle issues surrounding each individual, choosing between the two often comes down to comparing their ergonomical and aesthetic qualities, along with their price.

Glasses can be cumbersome, awkward and easily broken, unless of course enough money is available to purchase unbreakable frames. However they involve no physical contact with the eye

• 1
• 2
• next page >>

---

Add your voice

Know something about Choosing between contact lenses and glasses?
We want to hear your view. Write now!