Iridology Organization Warns Public Against Cosmetic Lens Use

Williamston, SC- The classic maternal plea for children to put on clean underwear before leaving the house may be in need of an update. And you may want to think twice about those cool cosmetic contact lenses. Members of the International Association of Iridology released a policy statement on the use of cosmetic contact lenses by the general public today in an effort to reduce the risk of misdiagnosis during emergencies.

Thanks to cosmetic contact lenses, reptilian humanoids can easily walk among us undetected for decades.

"We've seen a significant increase in the use of a variety of cosmetic contact lenses," IAI president and internationally acknowledged authority on emergency iridology Durpin Primrose explained. "The largest increase in use has occurred in the teens and young adults. And with Halloween right around the corner, we just wanted to get the word out and maybe save a few lives."

Cosmetic contact lenses are traditionally worn to alter the appearance of the eye rather than to correct any vision problems. They come in a variety of patterns and are often worn to accent costumes or to simply serve as a means of expressing individual style preferences. They are typically ordered online, with the most active time being the weeks leading up to Halloween.

Though recognized as a thing that people do since the 17th century, iridology truly became a science when Dr. Ignatz von Peczely published "Discoveries in the Realms of Nature and the Art of Healing" in the late 19th century. His 1880 iris chart firmly established iridology as a means of diagnosing human ailments at least as effective as other modalities at the time. Modern iridologists have advanced the field considerably since von Peczely first noticed a change in the iris of an owl whose leg he had accidentally broken, primarily by the use of cameras and PowerPoint.

The IAI policy statement includes discussion of the risks inherent in the use of cosmetic lenses, which are frequently found to be of poor quality. These include irritation and infection of the eye, which can ultimately result in loss of vision in some cases. But the main focus of the report was the potential for misdiagnosis by emergency iridology professionals if unaware of the presence of cosmetic lenses that alter the color patterns or shape of the iris.

A patient doesn't need to be able to speak, or to even be conscious, for a diagnosis to be made in most circumstances. Practitioners of iridology can exam the iris and match any observations to an iris chart that divides the eye into zones corresponding to abnormalities in other areas of the body. But according to Primrose, who has practiced emergency iridology for nearly three decades, minutes of delay can mean the difference between life and death. "The eyes may be a window to the soul and our health, but despite that old saying they can lie."