In 1987, a new era in contact lenses was started with the introduction of disposable contact lenses. An important factor in wearing contacts is making sure they're kept clean. But the creation of disposable contact lenses made it practical to wear them for a day or a week and then throw them away.

The reason you don't have to clean disposable contact lenses is because they're not worn long enough to accumulate harmful deposits. Disposable contacts are sometimes confused with "frequent replacement" or "planned replacement", lenses. True disposable lenses are meant to be used only once and then thrown away. Frequent replacement lenses have a planned replacement period that varies from two weeks to several months. And these lenses are meant for more than one-time use.

Except for daily disposables, many disposable contact lenses can do double duty. You can either wear them continuously for a week and then toss them out. Or you can wear them daily and clean them at night, for up to two weeks. But no matter what it's called, any lens that's reused, must be cleaned.

The purpose behind disposable contact lenses or frequent replacement contacts, isn't just to eliminate or reduce the necessary amount of cleaning. All contacts will acquire a buildup of protein from your tears and the dust and bacteria that enters your eyes. Soft contact lenses are particularly prone to getting unwanted accumulations because they are so absorbent. And these deposits can reduce the vision quality of the lenses and increase the risk of infection or other eye health problems. But if you frequently replace your lenses, there's less chance for any buildup problems.

Although disposable contact lenses reduce the problems associated with keeping contacts clean, they're more expensive than regular contacts on an annual basis. So you'll need to weigh whether the benefits to you are worth the higher cost.