There are many factors threatening eye health, including what we eat and drink, the air we breathe and the sun. Many things that we do tens of times a day and consider to be normal, such as rubbing our eyes or wiping away tears, may lead to various diseases. Tülay Kılıç, MD, Op. of Dünyagöz Ataköy shares striking information about the eyes, one of the most important and sensitive organs in our body, and about eye health. Eyes are one of the essential organs of the body. Are we taking good enough care of these invaluable organs? Or are we sufficiently informed? Tülay Kılıç, MD, Op. of Dünyagöz Ataköy gives us information about the risks threatening eye health.
Wiping away tears may cause infectious diseases
Although it seems like an innocent act, wiping away someone else’s tears may result in infectious diseases. If the person is suffering from conditions such as eye redness, excessive watering or swollen eyelids, the disease can be transmitted by tears only. Dr. Tülay Kılıç emphasizes that we need to wash our hands immediately with clean water and soap if we come into contact with tears. Explaining that it is even possible to contract diseases from other people’s cosmetics, Dr. Kılıç says, “People should avoid sharing their cosmetics. Conjunctivitis, also known as pink eye, can be transmitted by makeup such as eye shadow, eye liner and mascara.”
People with colored eyes should make sure to wear sunglasses
Prolonged exposure to sunlight leads to darkening of the lens, cataract and macular sensitivity over time. Warning that we should make sure to wear sunglasses under direct sunlight, Dr. Kılıç reminds people with colored eyes to be more careful. Dr. Kılıç comments, “The incidence of redness is higher in people with colored eyes than others. Therefore, people with colored eyes should avoid prolonged exposure to sunlight and be more careful about using sunglasses. The harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun cause early cataract formation and damage in the retina and particularly on the yellow spot”.
Substances like dust, small flies or cigarette ash may scratch the cornea
Rubbing the eye when a person is suddenly struck in the eye or a foreign body gets into the eye can cause serious problems. Dr. Kılıç says that even a small speck of dust or cigarette ash contacting the eye may scratch the cornea, and continues: “Unfortunately, people are doing the wrong thing in such cases. If a small fly or speck of dust enters the eye, they immediately rub the eye to remove it. We should never rub the eye, whether in such cases or when the eye receives a small impact. Otherwise, there can be consequences such as scratching of the cornea or loss of vision. In such cases, the person should wash the eye immediately with normal saline or plenty of water, if saline is not available, and consult an ophthalmologist."
Rest your eyes and blink regularly
The most significant symptoms of eye diseases include watery, itchy eyes, pain, difficulty in reading, writing seeming blurry, eye- and head-ache, tilting one’s head when reading, squinting and focusing problems. Spending long hours working on the computer may cause blepharitis, dryness, allergy and many other eye diseases. Dr. Kılıç recommends that we take a break from the computer every 15-20 minutes to rest our eyes and underlines the importance of intermittent resting and blinking
