As we head into allergy/smokey season in the summer (or dry, cold air season if you’re reading this in the winter) it is important we think about protecting our eyes from the environment we have here in Southern Alberta. The tear film is a small layer comprised of water, salts, mucous, and oils that form a protective coating separating our eyes from the environment. Without this tear film, our eyes can get itchy, red, watery, and irritated.
As our world and environment is changing, we are putting more stress on our meibomian glands – the glands responsible for the oil layer in our tear film. Things like air quality, device use, and smoking/vaping all contribute to meibomian gland function. Here are some tips and tricks to help you tear film stay healthy and keep your eyes happy:
- Hydration
- Drinking lots of water and keeping yourself hydrated can help produce more and better tears. Happy body and happy skin = happy eyelids. Also, think about keeping a humidifier at home for the winter to increase ambient humidity at home.
- Drinking lots of water and keeping yourself hydrated can help produce more and better tears. Happy body and happy skin = happy eyelids. Also, think about keeping a humidifier at home for the winter to increase ambient humidity at home.
- Nutrition
- High intake of these fatty acids has been shown to reduce dry eye signs and symptoms1. These fatty acids are found primarily in fish (salmon, sardine, herring, mackerel) as well as flaxseed, nuts, chia seeds, walnuts, and some eggs (look for the Omega 3 label).
- It can be just as effective to supplement with Omega 3 liquids/pills. It’s recommended to get ethically sourced Omega 3s that are high in EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). As always check with your nutritionist and health care team before starting any diet/supplement regime.
- Eye Drops
- An easy way to supplement those missing oils is to use lubricating eye drops. We recommend preservative-free eye drops – preservatives can increase redness and irritation on the surface of the eye.
- Be proactive: If you wait until the eye is irritated and dry to use the drops, the damage is already done. By being proactive with the artificial tears we can avoid those dry spells and keep the eye happy.
- Heat Treatments
- Chronic inflammation can cause the meibomian glands to become hard and plugged – they won’t secrete those healthy oils when they need to. This can also lead to increased occurrence of styes.
- It is recommended to get heat on the eyelids – I recommend I-RELIEF Dry Eye Mask for 10 minutes/night. That will provide contact heat and help relieve the congestion in those glands. You can try using a rice/wheat microwaveable bag. Other sources like a teabag, warm washcloth, or water bottle won’t provide good enough heat retention or lid contact to be as effective
- To target the meibomian glands even more, optometrists can perform IPL (intense pulsed light) treatment. This directly targets the glands and relieves inflammation and congestion in the lids. Give us a call to see if you’re a candidate.
- Environment
- Device use can lead to an increase in dry eye symptoms. With our world changing to an increase in work-from-home, an increase in device use at work and schools, and an increase in screen time at home, we need to think about ways to give our eyes a break. We normally blink about 17x/minute but that drops to 4x/minute when using a screen. Other habits like smoking/vaping also contribute to tear film breakdown and irritation2. Where possible, try to remove those irritants from your life.
I hope these 5 quick and easy tips can help give you some dry eye relief. We always carry all the products mentioned about and we are always here to answer questions. Most importantly, routine eye exams can identify early signs and causes of dry eye and can help customize a treatment plan to help prevent those itchy, dry, irritated symptoms. Give us a call for a consult or if you have any questions about any of the therapies discussed above.
1 - Giannaccare, G., Pellegrini, M., Sebastiani, S., Bernabei, F., Roda, M., Taroni, L., ... & Campos, E. C. (2019). Efficacy of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation for treatment of dry eye disease: a meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. Cornea, 38(5), 565-573.
2 - Xu, L., Zhang, W., Zhu, X. Y., Suo, T., Fan, X. Q., & Fu, Y. (2016). Smoking and the risk of dry eye: a meta-analysis. International journal of ophthalmology, 9(10), 1480.
