Baking Soda

[leereyno]

I was once told by someone who had worked in an optometrist's office that using wet baking soda to clean your lenses was a good way of extending their life. I was wearing soft torics at that point and while I'd never had good luck with them here in Phoenix, I did find that using the backing soda with them helped in terms of comfort and how long I could wear them. The lenses were extended wear soft and (I think) were made by Bauch and Lomb.

Is this something that is actually done in practice? I can see how this might be effective on gas permeable lenses, but soft lenses? I was always suprised that the baking soda didn't damage my soft lenses. It was like the grain of it was hard enough to clean the surface of the lenses, but not so hard as to damage the polymer material they were made out of.

The soft lenses I'm talking about were NOT disposables.

Thanks :)

[chip anderson]

If the idiot giving that advise ever looked at the lenses under magnifcation after such, he would know how bad it scratches them.


Chip

[drk]

Don't laugh, there was a product on the market called "Restore" which was essentially baking soda. A soft lens immediately dehydrates when placed in a saline/baking soda paste and can be digitally cleaned to remove some deposits. Then the lens must be copiously rinsed, rehydrated, cleaned and disinfected.

Thank the people in the disposable CL industry from saving us from having to do such ridiculous things now.

[drk]

Leereyno:

After reading your posts in total, I would recommend you do this:
Go to a good OD, have him/her try Soflens 66 Torics. If that doesn't work, late next year there should be a new Purevision Toric available, which should work very well for you (if they release in your parameters). Meanwhile, consider those RGP spheres or torics.

[harry888]

I was a contact lens tech before I was an OD (optometrist).

Baking soda is great for cleaning rigid, hard, or gas permeable lenses.

NOT SOFT LENSES, the baking soda is too abraisive.

[drk]

I beg to differ, Harry. You have it backwards.

[chip anderson]

Harry 888:


You wouldn't say that if you had ever looked at any of the HGP lenses with a measuring magnifier of at least 7x after "cleaning them" with baking soda.

However for soft lenses when everything else fails Popcorn salt mixed with any commerical softlens cleaner will sometimes "save" them. Only 50% of them fail to pass the above test.

Baking soda scratches All lenses.


Chip