Popularity of color contacts is on the rise.

Senior August Fuhrman comfortably sat in the chair of his dentist’s office awaiting his usual teeth cleaning. Shortly after, the dentist arrived preparing to quickly complete her job of a routine cleaning with an average patient. However, she soon discovered that Fuhrman looked more than average when she met with him eye to eye. She gasped. While using a sharp dental pick to complete the cleaning, Fuhrman’s dentist was caught by surprise at the hypnotic-spiral design of his contact lenses, and consequently cut his gum.

Cosmetic contacts have quickly become the latest teenage fad. SM North students, as well as teens across the country, say that colored lenses are a kick, whether you need glasses or not. People who have no need for correcting their vision are still donning these lenses simply for cosmetic purposes and a "new look."

"I have aqua, royal blue and clear," said freshman Jackie Allen, whose real eye color is light blue. "Sometimes I match them with my clothes, and sometimes I wear one of each color, and that’s why it’s fun wearing color contacts."

Sales of contact lenses are up 20 percent, and manufacturers are targeting the youth market with wild colors and patterns like zebra, ice fire, knockouts and red hots.

Senior Ricky Luangphithack, whose contacts are purple, gray and wildfire said that he enjoys the attention of having a noticeable change of eye color.

"When I have them on, people stare all the time," said Luangphithack, "I like the attention, but not if they keep staring at me,".

Last year in May, Luangphithack said that he decided to get colored contacts because he wanted to be different during the summer. He also mentioned that his purple contacts fashionably match his car.

But what began as a fashion fad is also a potential health hazard. Even cosmetic lenses that have no vision correction in them have to be fitted by an eye doctor; that’s the law. However many teens are buying bootleg colored lenses without a prescription from often unlicensed vendors, or creating color contacts themselves by dying clear contacts in vegetable dyes.

Jeannine Pollard and Jackie Bomar, opticians of the Vision Center located in Wal-Mart, cringed at the thought of the risky consequences.

"I didn’t realize for a while that people were dying their lenses and I was like, ‘oh my goodness, that’s not made for your eyeball!’"  Pollard said. "Look at how clean your hands have to be in order to put them in. Even if you have a little bit of lotion, it stings. Your eyes are tough, but they’re picky too ‘cause they are one of the ways that your body washes out toxins out of your system."

Bomar and Pollard said that some serous consequences of dyeing contacts can include severe infection of the eyeball and complete and irreversible damage to vision.

All contact lenses carry the potential for serious complications. However, Bomar and Pollard explained that some people carry the belief that because colored lenses do not correct vision and are purely cosmetic, they are not as risky to wear without a prescription, and they admonish that notion.

"In order to get color contacts, or regular contacts, a person has to consult an eye doctor, either an optometrist or an ophthalmologist," said Pollard.

Pollard and Bomar explained that a doctor’s visit is not only required but imperative in order to have the correct fitting and avoid potential dangers of scaring and damaging the eye.

"The exam doesn’t take that long; 10 minutes maybe," said Bomar.

Along with a doctor’s eye exam, the cost of color contacts has been found to be set at a reasonable price by Furhman, Luangphithack and Allen.

"I get mine in 6 months packs for $300, " said Allen, "so when it adds up, it’s only $10 more for each pack compared to regular contacts."

Prices range according to the brand names, and whether or not the contacts themselves are disposable. Most contact wearers prefer the soft-disposable contacts for comfort, but the colored contacts have been found that they might not always be as cozy.

"They feel different from regular contacts only when they get dry and slide around, then I actually see everything in that color," said senor Emily Barker.

Furhman, who said that he had to beg his mother for colored contacts, is now a converted eye glass wearer because he said that contacts were too much of a hassle.

"I think glasses are much more comfortable," said Furhman.

But Furhman also said that while he had the designer contacts, he had fun.

"It was kind of cool having something that nobody else had," he said.

Barker also agreed.

"It was an easy way for me to look different," said Barker, "without re-dying my roots."