Once upon a time, there was a man who vowed to find the thief that stole his glasses. He had contacts.
Sadly, we don’t get to choose how well we see. We either have vision like an eagle or have a hard time seeing clearly without the help of glasses and contact lenses. In some cases, laser treatment or LASIK is also required to restore normal vision.
It is said that changes in eyesight are often out of our control, and to some extent, it is true. We can not stop aging, and as we do, the functions of our body start to deteriorate with time. The same goes for our eyes. As we age, our eyesight starts to deteriorate, but we can’t just blame the clock’s ticking for wearing glasses.
Our daily habits shape the health of our body is in. There are things that we do daily without realizing how they can affect any particular part of our body. Here’s how some of the things you do or your daily activities affect your eyes:
Here are 7 things we do daily and do not realize how they are harming our eyes:
- Constantly rubbing your eyes
We all know how good it feels to rub our eyes when we need to, but we fail to realize that we are letting dirt and bacteria come in direct contact with our eyes. Constantly rubbing your eyes can increase the chances of contracting pink eye, and it can also break the fragile blood vessels in and around the eyes.
If you ever feel the urge to rub your eyes, try and blink rapidly so that the tears are washed away, and if that does not help, use eye drops or wash your eyes with running cold water.
2. Smoking
We don’t think we have to remind you that smoking is harmful to health. It can lead to cancer. But, in Ophthalmology, smoking has yet another side effect. It leads to a higher risk of cataracts and age-related macular degeneration that affects your vision.
Age-related macular degeneration can cause damage to the spot in your retina that enables you to have sharp vision. As a result, when this part of your eye deteriorates, so does your vision. This has been the leading cause of vision loss for people over 50 and smoking doubles the risk of developing this condition.
3. Not wearing sunglasses on a sunny day.
Let’s not forget that the word ‘sun’ is present in sunglasses, and wear them to protect our eyes whenever we are out in the sun. Other than looking good, they protect your eyes from extensive UV exposure, which can damage your retina and increase the risk of cataracts or any abnormal growths.
It is essential to wear UV- blocking sunglasses while outside to protect your eyes.
4. Wearing contact lenses while in the shower or the pool
If you wear contact lenses and you should not wear them in any form of water- a pool, the shower, etc.- you allow bacteria or even something called acanthamoeba to enter your eyes.
Acanthamoeba is a microorganism that lives in fresh water and soil and, in some rare cases, can cause a severe eye infection, permanent damage or even blindness.
5. Using old contact lenses
Whenever we buy a pair of contact lenses, they come with an expiration date. While it may seem harmless to use them past that date, while doing so, you are increasing your chances of catching an eye infection.
The number of hours we use contact lenses in a day is generally much more than the advised number of hours, which can damage your eyes. Sleeping in your contact lenses, sharing them with others, and even not switching your contact case every few weeks can lead to significant increases in the chances of catching an eye infection.
6. Applying expired eye make-up
We understand that you probably paid a lot of money to buy that favorite mascara or eyeliner of yours and to throw it away will cause you a lot of pain. But, to save your eyes from suffering, you might need to endure that pain from to time.
If you cannot utilize the make-up before the expiration date, you should throw it out and not apply it. Using expired eye makeup will irritate your contact lens if you wear one or lead to a severe eye infection.
7. Sitting in front of a screen all day.
Our entire day can be spent in front of a screen thanks to everything going digital. Our work is done on a screen, and entertainment is also brought to our screens. It is perfectly normal if your eyes feel physically tired after an entire day in front of the screen. But, that is normal we can not get ourselves accustomed to.
Take regular breaks from your screen to rest your eyes and incorporate activities that do not involve a screen in your day. Follow the “20-20-20” rule to relieve some of the strain from your eyes. For every 20 minutes of screen time, shift your eyes to look at an object 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds.
Just make sure you are not staring at a person ;p