Habits that are hurting your eyes.

Hygiene

Poor eye hygiene can result in eye inflammation or infection. When we get something stuck in our eye, our instant reaction is to stick our finger in and get it out. Be careful with this habit though: your eye area is delicate. Not to mention how grubby our fingers can be. It's best to rinse your eye with water if something gets stuck, rather than rooting around for it yourself.

Contact lens users need to poke around in their eyes daily to change lenses. So, lens wearers should be extra hygiene-conscious. Make sure you are washing your hands and changing your lenses regularly. Most people store their reusable lens box in their bathroom - not the most sterile of places!

So, remember to rinse your contact lens box with solution every day.

Diet

If you have a habit of eating fatty, sugary foods, you are not doing your eyes any favours. Your eyes need lots of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants to continue functioning well. Eating too much junk food puts you at risk of developing degenerative eye disease later in life. Have a look on our blogs for recipes and food tips for healthy eyes.

Not drinking enough water is another dietary habit that can lead to poor eye health. We need water in the body to lubricate our eyes through tear production; so, if you are dehydrated you might begin to suffer from dry eyes. Long term dryness results in inflammation and conjunctivitis. In extreme cases, scarring of the cornea can develop.

Exercise

A lack of cardiovascular exercise can be detrimental to our health in many ways, our eyes included. Exercise that gets your heart and blood pumping will lower pressure in your eyes, which helps to keep the messenger cells in your eyes protected.

Cardio exercise increases blood flow to the optic nerve and retina, decreasing the risk of macular degeneration, cataracts and glaucoma. To reap these benefits from exercise, make sure the activity gets your pulse rate up. A brisk walk or light jog are good, but so are dancing and trampolining. Pick an activity that you enjoy and that fits in with your routine.

Swimming is a great form of cardiovascular exercise, but has its downsides for eye health. Chlorine in pool water can irritate sensitive eyes. Remember to wear goggles when swimming to avoid over-exposure to harsh chemicals; and if you are a contact lens wearer - take your lenses out before you swim.

Stress

The body responds to a perceived threat with various mechanisms designed to make dealing with that stress easier. These mechanisms include: increased blood flow to your muscles, increased breath rate, and heightened awareness of your surroundings. To achieve a better awareness of the surroundings your pupils dilate so you can see better. If this happens irregularly it isn't a cause for concern. However if you are in a state of prolonged stress a number of unwanted eye problems begin to happen:

• Increased light sensitivity
• Eye strain
• Blurred vision
• Watery eyes
• Dry eyes

Daily activities

Eye strain is caused by looking at a single object for too long, too close, or in unsuitable lighting. It can manifest as dry eyes, headaches and blurred vision. Lots of normal day-to-day activities can cause eye strain. In fact, some of your favourite past times could be causing you eye strain. Reading, knitting, felting, T.V and computer use could all be culprits.

We don't blink as often when we are focusing on a single object for long periods. Contrary to what a 7-year-old, staring game-competitor might think, blinking is a good thing! It is important because it stimulates tear production, and tears are vital for eye health because they provide moisture and lubrication. They also contain antibodies, which help prevent infection. If your eyes are dry a lot of the time, they have no chance to wash away any debris that has accumulated on their surface.

Post-winter, we are all so enthused about sunshine, we forget basic sun care tips as we run outside to sunbathe. The most important thing to remember for our eye health, in this regard, is to wear good quality sunglasses. Choose a pair that have the CE mark so you know they offer UVA and UVB protection. Otherwise, you leave your eyes open to serious cumulative damage.

We wear rubber gloves to protect our hands when cleaning and we always wear closed toe shoes for DIY work. However, most of us forget to protect our eyes when we do routine tasks. Harsh chemicals, grit, sawdust and dirt are potential irritants that can cause damage during these tasks.

Forget about looking silly, and put those goggles on!