What To Do About Dry Eyes

Dry eyes can be an incredibly troublesome, irritating, and, if it goes far enough or lasts long enough, dry eyes can even become a debilitating disorder. With a decrease in air quality due to pollutants, dry eyes are becoming an issue society the globe over can be dealing with in the future. Far from that catastrophic prediction, most people, whether chronically or acutely, will suffer from dry eyes at one time or another. That’s why it is essential to be prepared and know what you can do and what you shouldn’t do in order to help alleviate the symptoms and irritation caused by dry eyes. If you’ve been wondering about dry eyes and how to achieve long-lasting relief from your symptoms, keep reading!

What Causes Dry Eyes? 

Dry eyes happen to nearly everybody at one time or another. There can be acute, or temporary and short-lived, reasons such as a lack of sleep, eye strain, air pollutants or irritants, and allergic reactions. When dry eyes as a problem are chronic then the disorder is called Dry Eyes Syndrome and that can be caused due to repeated exposure to acute causes of dry eyes, environmental factors, autoimmune diseases, aging, or even certain medications. However, the underlying mechanism for dry eyes is typically poor lubrication of the eyes due to insufficient or poor-quality tears that are unable to adequately hydrate the eye. This results in issues like blurry vision, dryness, redness, and the associated ‘itchy’ feeling with dry eyes.

What Helps With Dry Eyes? 

In the short term, over-the-counter products such as eye drops can help; however, overuse of eye drops can lead to exacerbation of the issue. If you’ve found using eye drops extensively without lasting relief, it is certainly time to get to an eye doctor. If you’re looking for more long-term solutions: Drinking water can help increase hydration of not only your whole body but your eyes as well, wearing protective eyewear, especially if you work or live in an environment with a lot of irritants, and avoiding using eye makeup that can irritate your eyes.

Need More Help With Dry Eyes? 

Don’t spend time being bothered by dry eyes! Consult the helpful and experienced team at Kirk Eye Center by giving us a call today at 970-669-1107!