In 1987, Americans began enjoying the benefit of disposable contact lenses. A Johnson & Johnson company called Vistakon, Inc. introduced Acuvue disposable soft contact lenses. For the first time, Americans could enjoy comfortable contact lenses. Over the years, more people with eyeglasses made the switch to contact lenses. Today, according to the CDC, 45 million Americans wear contact lenses. However, contact lenses impact the environment and the wallet. Let’s take a look at the cost and environmental implications of contact lenses.
How much do contact lenses cost?
The cost of contact lenses depends on your brand, type, and insurance converge. Most people will pay between $17 and $45 for a one-month supply of disposable contact lenses. There are 90-day contact lens supplies available, costing between $50 and $120.
The most affordable contact lenses are:
- DAILIES AquaComfort Plus: A thirty-day supply cost $17, about $205 annually.
- Proclear ONEday: $50 for a ninety-day supply, about $200 annually.
- Softens Daily Disposable Toric for Astigmatism: $25 for a thirty-day supply, $300 annually.
- 1-Day Acuvue Moist: $32 for a thirty-day supply, $300 annually.
The most expensive contact lenses are:
- 1-Day Acuvue Moist for Astigmatism: $32 for a thirty-day supply, $384 annually.
- Clariti 1-Day Multifocal: $100 for a ninety-day supply, $480 annually.
- Extreme H2O Daily: $40 for a thirty-day supply, $480 annually.
- Biotrue ONEday for Presbyopia: $122 for a ninety-day supply, $488 annually.
- 1-Day Acuvue Moist Multifocal: $45 for a thirty-day supply, $540 annually.
According to Women In Optometry, the majority of Americans (63%) do not have vision insurance. With the added cost of an eye appointment, those without vision insurance could potentially pay as much as $700 to $1,000 for their eye care on their own.
How Do Contact Lenses Impact the Environment?
Most people do not know that their contact lenses are recyclable. In fact, according to myvision.org, 93% of Americans simply discard their contact lenses in the trash. That amounts to about ten metric tons of extra plastic waste annually. Most people do not recycle their contact lenses because they simply do not know about recycling programs.
Contact lenses do not break down like typical plastic. Since lenses are not biodegradable, they break down into microplastics. While very little research has been done on the impact of microplastics, a study from the United Nations Environment Program estimates that one-third of all plastic waste ends up in the soil or freshwater supplies.
Some of the environmental impacts of contact lenses include:
- Microplastics entering the environment through sewage, acting as a vector for disease.
In soil, microplastics can impact species like the earthworm, leading to decreased fertilization and health of plants. - While microplastics have a low impact on human health, they can harm the gastrointestinal tracts of animals that ingest them in the environment.
- Since contact lenses are not biodegradable, they take a long time to break down. The lenses themselves can take anywhere from a few decades to hundreds of years to break into microplastic waste.
Is there another option other than contact lenses?
Contact lenses not only impact the environment, but wearers also incur a cost whenever they need a new supply. Depending on your vision, affordable vision is a one-time investment starting at just about $495 per eye, if you get LASIK or PRK.
Laser vision correction also has several different benefits:
- Not having to worry about the hassle each day when replacing your contact lenses or getting the next month’s supply.
- Avoiding some of the rare health implications of contact lenses altogether, such as dry eyes and red eyes.
- Seeing perfectly without the aid of contact lenses and glasses for the rest of your life.
Depending on how much you are paying for contact lenses, you could recoup the cost of laser vision correction within eighteen months. Also, laser vision correction will help reduce the amount of plastic waste that gets put into the environment.
FAQs
As they do, their plastic pollution spreads throughout the ocean and threatens aquatic animals and environments. Many of these discarded disposable contact lenses also pile up in sewage, much of which gets dumped into soil or flows through wastewater treatment plants.
How much waste do contact lenses produce? ›
In fact, according to myvision.org, 93% of Americans simply discard their contact lenses in the trash. That amounts to about ten metric tons of extra plastic waste annually. Most people do not recycle their contact lenses because they simply do not know about recycling programs.
How much does it cost to maintain contact lenses? ›
You may be surprised, but the average cost for contact lens solution can range from $150 to $200 per year. For those who wear bi-weekly or monthly contacts, they may only spend around $300 for their year supply of contacts, but they are spending a lot of money just on refilling contact lens solution.
Are glasses or contacts better for the environment? ›
Like contact lenses, glasses are not biodegradable. As a fashion accessory, people buy new eyeglasses on average every 2 years or so. This makes glasses more damaging to the planet than contact lenses.
What are the negatives of contact lenses? ›
Contact lenses can be more expensive than eyeglasses, especially if you require frequent replacements or custom fittings. They also require proper maintenance to prevent infections or other eye problems. Contact lenses can cause dry eyes, and if worn for too long, they can lead to discomfort or even injury.
What is the environmental impact of contact lenses? ›
As they do, their plastic pollution spreads throughout the ocean and threatens aquatic animals and environments. Many of these discarded disposable contact lenses also pile up in sewage, much of which gets dumped into soil or flows through wastewater treatment plants.
How long does it take for contact lenses to biodegrade? ›
750 million plastic lenses are flushed down the toilet or end up in landfills. 6. It can take 500 years for plastic contact lenses to decompose.
Are contacts eco-friendly? ›
Contact lenses, in addition to water content and hydrogel content, are made of water-based plastics—plastics that if not addressed on how to dispose of properly will cause some harm to the environment.
How wasteful are daily contacts? ›
Myth 2: Daily Disposables Are Bad for the Environment
But did you know that the impact is less than the carbon footprint of wearing glasses? A single pair of soft contact lenses contains around 25 milligrams of plastic. That means a year's supply of daily disposable lenses produces just over 9 grams of plastic waste.
What contacts are best for the environment? ›
But, the general consensus is that daily disposable contact lenses are your best option. Compared to the other two options, daily disposable contact lenses don't need any cleaning. As such, you've eliminated contact lens solution, buying new contact cases, and cleaning in one fell swoop.
Not everyone is a suitable candidate for contact lenses. For some people, it may be difficult or nearly impossible to wear them. This may be due to a variety of reasons such as having allergies, dry eyes, a history of eye infections, or a poor lens fit.
What are the side effects of wearing contacts everyday? ›
Symptoms of Eye Irritation or Infection
- discomfort.
- excess tearing or other discharge.
- unusual sensitivity to light.
- itching, burning, or gritty feelings.
- unusual redness.
- blurred vision.
- swelling.
- pain.
Because the world has used eyeglasses for centuries and contact lenses for less than 100 years, physical frames have the reputation of being safer than contacts. That is the general truth, as contact lenses run a higher risk of eye infection due to the lens being on your eye for long stretches of time.
Are daily contacts more wasteful? ›
Unlike longer-wear prescription contact lenses, which are typically replaced less frequently, daily disposables are discarded every day. But again, while daily lenses create slightly more plastic waste than monthly lenses, they eliminate the need for solution bottles which have a larger environmental impact.
Do contact lenses release microplastics? ›
Lenses with shorter lifetimes showed the greatest amount of shed microplastics after this exposure. Based on their data in this small-scale study, the researchers estimate that more than 90,000 microplastic particles per year could be shed from some lenses if worn for 10 hours a day.
What happens to recycled contact lenses? ›
Once collected, the aggregated contact lenses, blister packaging and outer foils are sorted, shredded and washed. The material is then densified into hard-granulated plastic granules. The granules are then extruded so they can be incorporated into the production of different plastic products such as benches.
How are contact lenses recycled? ›
Well, once received, the contact lenses and blister packs are separated by composition and cleaned. The metal layers of the blister packs are recycled separately, while the contact lenses and plastic blister pack components are melted into plastic that can be remolded to make recycled products.
