WHY CONTACTS? The word is nearly as old as the mountains and a number of people still turn around and fire the 'why' thing at you. All you do is shrug your eyes spread wide in wonder if there could be such a question regarding something that has been around for what seems like eternity now. But then, a question is a question howsoever obvious the answer might be.

First and the foremost, one gets rid of the irritating apparatus on one's face, which immediately undoes the aesthetic loss caused by its presence. In short, you look smarter than ever. That was one reason that comes first to anyone who thinks about the pros of the contacts, but it is not the only one by any means.

When was the last time you wished you had wipers on your glasses so that you didn't have to take them off ever now and then to remove the misty presence of water or snow. That's another one of the advantages.

The glasses distort the appearance of objects. This distortion is done away with in case of contacts. One sees the real things the real way. Besides, the peripheral vision is, to a large extent, compromised with glasses, which is not the case with the lenses.

For sportsmen who play outdoor games like football, lenses are indispensable because with

glasses chances are that one fine day while you are chasing the ball, it will suddenly disappear and by the time you get your glasses back, the opponents will be celebrating. In short, get the lenses before you are out of the team.

Those were the pros, but it would be unfair to the 'why-guy' if we hid the downside. The most prominent disadvantage is that they need careful handling and frequent replacements, which makes them delicate things that are heavy on the pocket.

Another problem is that since contacts are worn inside the eyes, the chances of infection are quite high.

And for the carefree professionals there is an extra note of caution. Dear fellow, unlike the glasses, you cannot just come home and toss them off. You need to clean them, disinfect them and then place them back in the lens case.

Thus, time, diligence, patience and money are the four things a contact lens demands of its wearer. If you have them, it's a great companion, and if not, better get used to the glasses.