You sure can, but the ease of doing so depends on the type of adjustment and frame material. Our optical experts will take you through adjustments that you safely try at home.

MeMetal frames onlyPlPlastic frames only

The Easy Fixes

These glasses adjustment methods are safe to try on your own with little risk. Your glasses are fragile, so be sure to use caution any time you’re making an adjustment.

The Problem: Your glasses are sitting too high.
The Fix: Hold your glasses with your non-dominant hand and use your thumb on your dominant hand to gently push out on the plastic nose pad. Do this to both sides until they sit comfortably on your nose.

The Problem: Your glasses are sitting too low.
The Fix: Hold your glasses with your non-dominant hand and use your thumb on your dominant hand to gently push in on the pad arm (behind the nose pad). Do this to both sides until they sit on your face comfortably.

The Medium Fixes

These adjustments are rated as medium difficulty. You can try them at home, but you’ll need to be extra cautious.

The Problem: Your glasses are sliding down your face.
The Fix: Run the earpieces under really warm water (not boiling, but as hot as you can get it from the faucet) for a few minutes. Gently bend the earpieces slightly downwards to add curve.

The Problem: Your glasses are too tight on the backs of your ears.
The Fix: Run the earpieces under really warm water (not boiling, but as hot as you can get it from the faucet) for a few minutes. Gently bend the earpieces upwards to relax the curve.

The Problem: Your glasses are too wide on your temples.
The Fix: Secure the lens with your non-dominant hand and softly push in on the end piece with your dominant hand. Do this to both sides to tighten the fit of your glasses on your head.

The Problem: Your glasses are squeezing your temples.
The Fix: Secure the lens with your non-dominant hand and softly pull out on the end piece with your dominant hand. Do this to both sides to loosen the fit of your glasses on your head.

The Hard Fixes

CAUTION You’ll be better off leaving these adjustments to an optician. Trying these at home without the proper tools and skills can damage your glasses.

The Problem: Your distance vision isn’t quite right. You might be able to find a focal point but not for long.
The Fix: Your lenses likely need to be moved further away from your eyes to adjust your focal point. See an optician to add retroscopic tilt to your lenses.

The Problem: You’re having trouble reading up close.
The Fix: Your lenses likely need to be moved closer to your eyes. See an optician to add panoscopic tilt to your lenses.

The Problem: Your glasses are either too tight or too wide on your temples.
The Fix: With plastic frames, you should see an optician to make this adjustment.

Hope this helps!

Our team would be happy to walk you through an adjustment over the phone or to simply give you more advice! Give us a call at 1-800-210-3975

About Dr. Holly Vaught, OD

Dr. Holly J. Vaught, is the eye doctor at Vaught Family Eye Care in Franklin, Indiana, where she provides comprehensive services for patients of all ages. In 2009, she graduated with honors from Indiana University School of Optometry. Her training includes the areas of diagnosis and treatment of common ocular diseases, primary care, contact lenses, and pre- and post-op care for refractive and cataract surgeries. Dr. Vaught is a member in good standing of the American Optometric Association, the Indiana Optometric Association, and Women of Vision.

Disclaimer: Readers.com® is not liable for damage that occurs while adjusting your glasses or readers at home.

If you wear glasses, this can be tricky, since glasses are worn on your face and you typically handle them with your hands. But don’t worry; the information below will give you a polished understanding of how to keep your glasses and your eyes clean during this global pandemic.

How Do You Keep Bacteria From Getting in Your Eyes?

In order to keep bacteria from getting into and affecting your eyes, you must keep your hands clean by washing them frequently. Hands and fingers carry more bacteria than any other place on the body, which is why touching your face is such a threat. If you must touch your eyes for any reason, it’s critical that your hands are thoroughly washed first.

Bacterial and viral eye infections can also be prevented by keeping your distance from individuals who are showing signs of an eye infection. Maintaining a safe distance from friends and family who are ill can help lower the number of infectious germs that are spread.

Pink eye (conjunctivitis) and other bacterial infections are the most common to affect your eyes. Treatment for conjunctivitis depends on what kind you have, such as bacterial or allergic. Prescription ointments, eye drops, and allergy medications are often prescribed and are typically very effective in clearing symptoms quickly.

It’s also possible to get a viral strain of conjunctivitis. While antiviral or steroid eye drops may be needed in severe cases, viral eye infections normally resolve on their own.

Preventing infection is almost always more effective than treating it, so washing your hands is of the utmost importance. Ensuring your hands and fingers are clean is the best way to keep from spreading germs.

How to Properly Wash Your Hands Before Handling Eyeglasses

Washing your hands every time you do something as routine as handling your glasses can seem tedious.

But think about how many times you touch your glasses throughout the day: to push your glasses up when they slide down your face, to take your glasses off to clean the lenses or to remove your reading glasses when not in use. Whether you are a glasses wearer or not, hand-washing is essential when practicing diligent personal hygiene.

There is no “incorrect” method to washing your hands, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend these steps for the most effective hand-washing:

1. Turn water on at a conservative pressure — enough to rinse your hands, but not enough to waste.
2. Apply soap to hands and rub them together, creating a lather. Don’t forget between your fingers, under your nails and the backs of your hands.
3. Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. Need help keeping time? Try singing the 20-second chorus from one of these well-known songs while washing your hands.
   – “Livin’ on a Prayer” by Bon Jovi
   – “Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees
   – “Jolene” by Dolly Parton
   – “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac
   – “Happy Birthday” (twice)
4. Thoroughly rinse your hands with clean water.
5. Use a clean towel to dry your hands and turn off the tap using a towel or your elbow.

How Do I Clean and Disinfect My Glasses?

If your glasses become contaminated or dirty (which can happen from a variety of sources) having clean hands won’t be much help against an eye infection. Cleaning your glasses regularly is a great way to maintain best hygiene practices and preventing any bacteria from getting near your eyes.

Cleaning Your Glasses

Once your hands have been washed, take your glasses off and run them under a low-pressure stream of lukewarm water. This will remove any debris or dust that has collected on the lenses and frames.

Apply a small drop of dish soap to each lens. The soap should be free of any lotions to avoid leaving streaks. Gently massage the soap on both sides of the lenses and the entire frames, reaching all the nooks and crannies.

After sudsing your glasses for a minute or so, rinse them under the water. Examine the hinges and lip where the lenses meet the frames to make sure no soap residue is left. Remove excess water by gently shaking your glasses then dry them off with a clean, lint-free towel.

In this time of social distancing, self-isolation and, for some, quarantine, using the recommendations above will leave your eyes — and your overall health — in tip-top shape.

Many of us make a conscious effort to not touch our faces for many health and hygiene reasons – but try as we might, our lenses still end up with unknown spots and smudges. What you may not realize is that on average, we touch our faces 15 times an hour*. In addition, we are exposed to all kinds of elements throughout the day, causing debris to stick to the lenses of our readers.

We decided to investigate the most common ways the lenses of your readers can become dirty while going through your normal daily routine… and the end result surprised us.

Shop All Glasses Cleaning & Maintenance >

It’s easy to see that you don’t have to actually touch your lenses for them to become dirty. Are there other ways that are a common nuisance for you? Comment below!

*Sources: Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene A Study Quantifying the Hand-to-Face Contact Rate and Its Potential Application to Predicting Respiratory Tract Infection

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<p><strong>Please include attribution to Readers.com with this graphic.</strong></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> <p><a href=’//www.readers.com/blog/how-did-my-readers-get-so-dirty/’><img src=’//www.readers.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Rea-DirtyGlasses-Infographic-01.jpg’ alt=’How Did My Readers Get So Dirty? Infographic – by Readers.com’ width=’700px’ border=’0′ /></a></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> <p>