Smoking . . . It’s Damaging Your Eyes

Study after study has proven smoking is bad for your health, especially your lungs and heart, but there are some detrimental effects smoking has on your vision, too. Smoking has been linked to two of the leading causes of vision loss, cataracts and macular degeneration, as well as a number of other eye health problems.

Cataracts occur when the lens in your eye thickens and becomes less transparent and less flexible. The lens becomes cloudy, causing vision changes including blurring, faded color perception, glare, poor night vision, double vision, and reduced vision. You could compare vision with cataracts to looking through a waterfall. So what’s the link to smoking? The more you smoke, the greater the risk becomes to develop cataracts. Smoking contributes to cataracts by altering the cells of the lens through oxidation. There is also evidence that smoking leads to the accumulation of heavy metals like cadmium in the lens.

Macular degeneration involves the deterioration of the macula, the central part of the retina that allows us to perceive fine details. As the macula wears out, people experience blurriness, distortions, or blind spots in their central vision. And how does this connect to smoking? Smoking promotes macular degeneration by interfering with blood flow to the retina. Smoking also increases the harmful effects of oxidation on the cells of the macula.

What’s one of the safest things to do for your vision? Never start smoking at all. If you are a smoker, quit. Ex-smokers still have an increased risk of vision loss from cataracts or macular degeneration when compared with people who have never lit up a cigarette. For more information on how smoking can affect your eye health, call our office today.

Flu Season is Upon Us

The inevitable flu season. It comes back to get us every year. Luckily, there are many easy ways to help protect yourself this season, and most methods should sound familiar; thorough hand washing, a mix of rest and regular physical activity, and lots of vitamin C are great habits for staying healthy no matter what the season is. Other simple preventative measures include avoiding direct contact with your eyes, nose, and mouth, as well as avoiding close interaction with others who may be sick. And of course, it’s important to get vaccinated to prevent a run in with the flu, but did you know there’s another preventative measure out there?

A routine eye exam is one way that flu symptoms may be detected before they become severe. In the early stages of any virus, symptoms may be less detectable, but there a number of subtle signs in the eyes that can be an early indication of a virus like the cold or flu. Doctors can look underneath your eyelids for a papillary reaction. A papillary reaction looks like goose bumps with redness and irritation, all things that indicate a patient is symptomatic. Besides early detection of viruses like the cold or flu, eye exams can also detect signs of other health problems such as diabetes, glaucoma, or heart disease. Early detection of a variety of illnesses is just another great reason to see your eye doctor at least once a year. Call us today to beat flu and cold season!

The Story on Watery Eyes

It’s safe to say tears play an important role in keeping us healthy. Tears keep the surface of our eyeballs clean and moist, and help protect our eyes from damage. Although they appear to be nothing but water, tears are actually made of mucus, water, and oil. Mucus to coat the surface of the eye and bind tears to the eye, water to act as a saline solution containing various vitamins and minerals, and oil to prevent evaporation of the tears.

Every time we blink, we wash our eyes with tears produced by the lacrimal glands in our upper eyelids. When our eyes are irritated or inflamed, these same glands produce extra tears. Normally, tears are drained out of the eye and into the nose through ducts in the corners of our eyes. When we produce too many extra tears, or when our normal tear drainage is blocked, our eyes may get watery.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the causes for watery eyes. Excess tears can be caused by:

Allergies. The most common allergens to cause irritated, watery eyes are grass, tree, and weed pollens, pet dander, dust mites, and molds, as well as non-true allergens such as aerosol sprays, perfumes, and cigarette smoke.

Infections. Tears are produced to wash away germs and discharge, but they don’t always keep the bacteria away. Conjunctivitis, commonly known as “pink eye” will produce excess tears, in addition to redness, blurred vision, and discharge. Blephartis is another common infection of the eyelid known to cause watery eyes.

Irritants. As a response to irritations like dry air, bright light, wind, smoke, dust, an eyelash, or eyestrain, eyes will produce excess tears.

Dry-eye syndrome. Seems contradictory, but when eyes dry out, the lacrimal glands will produce an overabundance of tears to make up for the dryness, often overwhelming the eye’s natural drainage system.

Blocked tear ducts. Although less common, there is a chance watery eyes are caused by a blockage of the ducts that normally drain away tears.

In general, watery eyes are nothing to get worked up about and will clear up on their own, but if you notice the following symptoms with watery eyes, please give us a call:

• Reduced vision
• Pain around your eyes
• A foreign body sensation
• Unexplained tearing over a long period of time
• Red eyes that are producing discharge

Stay On Top of Your Game with Healthy Vision

Have you ever thought about how your eyes direct the movement of your body while playing sports? Not only are you using your eyes to follow the ball in a game of tennis, but you’re also using vision to properly position your body for the next hit.

Needless to say, if your vision isn’t up to par, neither is your game. Healthy eyes, like strength and speed, are important for the success of any sport, whether its baseball, soccer, or golf.  Fortunately, your optometrist can help you stay on top of your game with regular exams, training, and eye protection.

If you’ve been practicing and training hard, but still can’t seem to achieve your desired level of performance, you may have a vision difficulty standing in the way.  With less than 20/20 vision, you may find it difficult to clearly see objects, such as an archery target. Decreased depth perception and eye focusing can make judging distances and adjusting your focus between close and far objects a challenge, a problem if you’re playing a round of golf. Likewise, reduced hand-eye coordination can slow performance of your body, causing you to strike out when you’re up to bat in baseball.

If you’re ready to take your game to the next level, your optometrist can help by performing a comprehensive eye exam, creating a personalized vision therapy or enhancement program, and recommending protective eyewear, sunwear, or specialty lenses to optimize the visual conditions and needs of various sports.

Schedule an appointment with our office today! With healthy vision, you’ll always be on top of your game.