A 14-year-old New York girl will lose sight in one eye after developing an eye infection from wearing illegal vanity contacts she bought in a local beauty supply store, doctors say.
Erica Barnes, like many teens, bought the cheap contacts in Jamaica, Queens, without much knowledge of the dangers of doing so.
Barnes allegedly bought the hazel colored lens from a beauty supply store on Jamaica Avenue for twenty dollars. “For twenty dollars she lost her eye. Every parent should know their girls are in danger,” said Trina Swain, shaking her head in disgust
Contact lens, under federal law, must be sold with a prescription from a licensed doctor.
Now there is a an underground world in beauty supply stores, selling colored contact lens illegally. “I see three to four cases a week of infections. Women are just doing it for the sake of beauty and to look better. They end up almost losing their sight,” said Dr. Jules Winokur, a corneal specialist on the Upper East Side.
“There needs to be proper fitting and proper instruction on how to store them,” Winokur suggests.
article courtesy of Newsone.com/ktla.com
