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Comment by bello | Hacker News Reader

Wow. The article says that she was wearing daily disposables, which are supposed to be much safer. Did AK really settle within <24hrs time?

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I really wonder this too. I've known people who used daily contacts but would leave them in for multiple days at a time (and one was a swimmer). I've swam a lot with my contacts before as I'm mostly blind without my contacts and don't want prescription goggles. This article makes me a little more reluctant to go swimming with contacts but I throw them out every night.

I wear monthlies, but when swimming I swap for dailies, chuck them right after and wear glasses for the rest of the day. I feel safer that way. But I don't take any kind of precaution in the shower. I didn't even realise there was a risk there.

One more thing to live in fear of besides climate change, cancer, drug resistant bacteria, nuclear war, terrorism and the singularity. Yay.

Should I feel better or worse that it's far less likely to affect me than any of those things?

Additionally in the U.K. hot water may not be as safe as it is in the US. Older houses tended to be built with a hot water tank in the attic (loft) and apparently some were somewhat open to the elements and animals. A legacy of that is the dual taps you find in bathroom sinks/tubs.

The contact lens cleaner solution always insists that you wash your hands with it instead of tap water. I think I'll do that from now on when changing contacts

I think that's a little overboard. If you just wash your hands with soap and water and dry them with a non-bacteria infected towel I'm guessing you shouldn't be at risk.

Why not use swimming goggles? Presumably those would reduce the chance of water getting into your eyes :)

I wear goggles.. If you are a swimmer you know googles won't keep your eyes dry.

Yes, they will if you wear the proper size

After you are done swimming, you are likely to remove the goggles before you completely dried yourself. Water can run from your hair down to your eyes.

Also, after swimming for an hour and taking a break, I like to remove them for a bit. It has happened that I got water in my eye in this way. Never had an infection because of it though!

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