ADDED TO CARTHow old do you have to be to wear colored contacts?
Sooner or later, your myopic youngster is bound to want to leave glasses behind and move on to contacts, whether for their superior comfort or for aesthetic appeal. But can kids wear contacts? What is the right age for your child to start wearing contacts, even colored contacts?Every child is different, so there is no single age at which a child becomes ready to wear contacts.
Generally speaking, doctors recommend starting kids with contact lenses in early adolescence, since they are typically more diligent with cleaning and caring for their contacts than adults. With that said, when it comes time to decide when to make the transition to contact lenses, parents should consider things like how your child handles other responsibilities as well as personal hygiene.
Colored contacts for kids: yes or no?
As you and your child begin to explore the plethora of possibilities of contact lenses, keep in mind that colored contact lenses are a solution not only for vision correction, but also present an aesthetically interesting alternative to traditional contact lenses.
But aren’t colored contacts for Halloween? Of course, people also use colored contact lenses to take their theatrics to the next level, since you can use colored contact lenses without vision correction. However, many people, especially adolescents, actually use colored contacts daily. There are a wide selection of prescription colored contacts available on the market that are designed not only to correct the vision of the wearer, but also to highlight the eye’s natural beauty by accentuating the colors that are already there.
Can 11- year olds wear colored contacts?
But you may be asking yourself, can 11 or 12-year olds wear colored contacts? At what age can you wear colored contact lenses? Colored contacts and color-enhancing contact lenses can be a good choice for kids, not only for special occasions or costumes, but also for the kids who are ready to start adding a bit of flair to their look, letting them draw out their natural eye colors, or change them all together. Pre-teens are notorious for their attention to their physical appearance, colored contacts can be a fun and interesting way for them to shake up their wardrobe and add a cool “new” accessory to their style.
You and your child can personalize colored contact lenses to fit the specific eye color and prescription strength of your child. The lenses are available in a variety of colors for you to choose from and are specially designed to naturally draw out the innate beauty of dark or light eyes, or to change their color completely, depending on the kind of lens you order. Enhancement tinted lenses work well to highlight the natural color of the eye, intensifying the color without actually covering the iris, while color tinted lenses cover the natural eye color with pigmented tints of a completely different color.
You can order prescription colored contact lenses online, just specify each eye’s prescription and the contact color. AIR OPTIX® COLORS contact lenses, for example, come in blue, brilliant blue, gray, sterling gray, green, gemstone green, pure hazel, honey, and brown shades. However, just as with other kinds of contact lenses, colored contacts must also be specifically prescribed by your doctor.
What age can you start wearing colored contacts?
In the end, there is no set age at which doctors recommend allowing children to wear colored contacts, it is a judgement call that you as parents must make together with your kids. When you’re both ready, consult with your doctor to see what options are best for your child.
