Do you suffer from Dry Eyes?
The symptoms of dry eyes are experienced by around 30% of the world’s population, but most of us have either become accustomed to it or have put off any form of treatment for whatever reason we can muster in our busy, busy lives.
But Dry Eye can be a real problem, and it can cause even more issues down the road if not carefully taken care of.
Dry Eye can be caused by a variety of things that are pretty much staple in our lives today and this is why it has become so common. From air conditioning drying out your eyes and watching telly for too long to a combination of things that can cause your eyes to feel dry, or even sting and burn.
Dry Eyes – A Progressive Condition
Dry Eyes is not something that one should easily disregard. As a typically progressive condition, it can become worse over time doing more and more damage to your eyes if not treated properly. It may in fact not be curable, but in most cases it can be managed pretty well, or at least well enough that it won’t cause major harm down the line.
So how do you tell if you have Dry Eyes? You take a look at the symptoms of course, and match them up with what you feel. If your eyes feel exceptionally dry and they get worse throughout the day, if your eyes feel like they are burning, you experience a stinging sensation in your eyes, or even if your eyes produce excess tearing you could be suffering from Dry Eye. And if you are experiencing any of these symptoms, then it should be looked at by a professional optometrist as soon as possible.
How Are Dry Eyes Caused?
There are two main ways in which your dry eyes could be caused. The first is an aqueous deficiency in the tears. This means that there are too few tears to lubricate and wet the eyeball, resulting in the obvious dry eye symptoms. This type of deficiency leaves your eyes feeling okay in the morning but gets progressively worse throughout the day.
The other cause is a lipid deficiency. This deficiency is what causes the more painful dry eye symptoms such as burning and stinging in the eyes. Unlike the aqueous deficiency, the burning and stinging sensations are felt in the morning as you wake up.
But what causes these deficiencies? There are a whole host of activities that can cause any one of the symptoms such as watching TV for too long, working long hours on the computer, staring at monitors, reading books in low light or bad light situations, driving and a whole bunch more.
What To Do About Dry Eye
The best thing to do is speak with a trusted optometrist and they can help you pinpoint in your life what things may be causing your dry eyes. Listen to what your eyes are telling you and seek the right form of treatment to manage the discomfort or pain.
The use of lubricated artificial tears can be a simple solution to your dry eye problem. You can get low viscosity eye drops that work well to give immediate relief, or invest in a high viscosity eye drop that is more like a gel and can last much longer. There are of course other methods of treatment such as Restasis, but these types of treatments are usually prescribed by an eye doctor and you should see them personally to receive your treatment.
Remember, if you have any problems with your eyes, no matter how insignificant they may seem to you, the best thing to do is give one of our optometrists a call on 0861693 937 and ask for an appointment. Prevention is after all, better than a cure and looking after your eyes is something every elderly person will wish they had done when they were younger.