Why dry eyes are a common thing in our everyday lives?

Dry eyes are becoming a far more widespread problem than you may think.

Many people suffer from it daily.

For this reason, in this article, we are going to discuss several ways for dry eye treatment.

Dry eyes could seem like something insignificant at the beginning, especially if there is no pain, but this condition is not to be overlooked.

With an ease eye dryness could lead to complicated conditions like retinal damage, scratching of the sclera (this is the white part of the eyeball, that keeps the eye’s shape), or even lead to vision damage.

The symptoms of dry eyes are simple to notice.

First and most easily to spot, is the uncomfortable feeling when you blink, the stinginess and scratchiness.

Later on, there may occur redness and sensitivity to light.

And when the condition is at an advanced stage, you could start having vision problems like blurriness and eye fatigue.

What causes dry eyes?

Dry eyes are mainly caused because of the low tear lubrication by the tear glands.

The tear glands are in the upper part of our eye holes and produce tear fluid that the eyelids spread all over the surface of the sclera.

The dry eyes syndrome may occur when you are in an air-conditioned room with warm airflow.

Also, staying in a room with bad, dim lighting is another way to irritate your eyes.

Reading for a long time without getting rest is just as well harmful.

Other causes of dry eyes are overly strong artificial lighting; smoke or staring at a computer screen for too long. (Applies for staring in smartphone or tablet screens, too.)

Unquestionably, blue light is usually the main cause of dry eyes.

Blue light is emitted by all technologies that have a display.

Blue light is bad for your eyes because it makes you forget to blink and thus your eyes do not get lubricated.

Blinking is healthy for your eyes, so you should blink more often.

Is there a way to get rid of dry eyes?

Hopefully, there are ways to fight the eye dryness.

Take regular breaks from your screen

Looking for a long time in one spot strains greatly your eyes.

Plus, working in front of a computer for hours and hours is not healthy for many other reasons, some of which we will discuss later in this article.

The tear fluid has to be spread all over the surface of the eyes.

This happens when you blink and look around at close and far objects.

When you take a break from your computer/phone screen, look around for some minutes and you are going to feel immediate comfort.

Use artificial tears

For quick relief of not so serious cases of dry eyes, artificial tear drops are one of the best solutions out there.

Most of the eye drops are easily accessible, for the reason they are available without a doctor’s prescription.

This means that if you feel the need of trying out any medical way of solving your problem, you do not need to go and see a doctor, just to make a research for the best medicine title.

There are two types of artificial tear drops – gel-like and watery.

The former type of drops are thicker in appearance and are more reliable for a long-lasting fix.

However, they are recommended for using later at night, before going to bed, because they may cause vision blurring and are dangerous for using before you drive, for example.

The later – watery type of eye drops – are the ones you could use at any time throughout the day.

They are a fast remedy, but for a short time. And in order to keep the effect, you have to use them more frequently.

Moisture the air

Especially during the cold autumn and wintertime the air in our homes and offices becomes really dry due to the air conditioners and forced-air heating.

The warm flow dries the air and consequently our eyes.

For this reason, be sure that from time to time you clean the air with fresh, outside air and do not force so much the air conditioners.

Beware when wearing contact lenses

For sure contact lenses are better for your image if you feel uncomfortable with spectacles.

But deciding to wear contact lenses is a responsible task.

Dryness with contact lenses may occur because of the small amount of oxygen that makes it to the eye due to the thin lens layer.

Without the essential oxygen, the tear glands suffer and hardly can they produce tears.

Moreover, hygiene is essential to contact lenses.

Not paying enough attention to hygiene could lead to even greater problems than dryness.

Of course, if you sense any discomfort with your contact lenses and think that they are the reason for your dry eyes, first consult with a doctor before trying to deal with the problem by yourself.

Wear computer glasses

In the beginning, we mentioned that blue light is one of the main reasons for having dry eyes.

Of course, it does not only cause dry eyes but vision damage and many other health issues.

And at these technological times, blue light is our daily companion – at work, on the phone and at home in front of the TV or our computer.

Therefore, blue light filter glasses exist.

They are made especially to lower the effect of blue light on our eyes.

Computer glasses are made with special lenses that block the blue light rays and this is why when looking through them, the screen looks a little yellow.

You could get such glasses in every optics store with or without dioptre, depending on your needs.

Quality computer glasses are not cheap and it is preferable for you to be buying them from certificated stores.

Alternatively, there is another option to block your monitor’s blue light without all the fuss around the activity of buying glasses. And this is Iris.

Iris – the blue light blocking software

Iris is a computer program that once installed will save you a lot. It is helping thousands of people with their vision problems and headaches around the globe.

Iris operates simply – it blocks the blue light and applies an eye-friendly filter on your screen.

It doesn’t at all distract you from doing your job, on the contrary – it helps you do it with fresh eyes and mind.

Iris even has an option to remind you to have some minutes break to look around and flex your eye muscles, which helps a lot for their well being.

Last words

Looking after our eye health is of great importance.

In general, it does not take a great effort to do so and starting with Iris is one of the easiest ways to start a series of good health habits.

Autor: Yoana Borisova