What should I do if my eyes are “dry”?

Award-winning works (article category) of the Health Management Committee's "Popularize health knowledge, advocate healthy life" popular science collection

Author: Xu Yunhua

Unit: Health Management Center of Wenjiang District People's Hospital, Chengdu

Often working overtime in front of the computer, writing papers, staying up late to play games, watching Tik Tok, browsing Moments... Do you feel that your eyes are "tired", "your eyes hurt after looking at the phone for a while", "blurry", "like to blink", "photophobia", etc. These are all manifestations of "dry" eyes. With the changes in modern lifestyles and living environments, and the widespread use of electronic products, people use their eyes more and more, and their eyes are suffering and getting more and more tired. When our eyes can't bear the heavy

When it is negative, symptoms of dry eyes occur.

【Beginner's knowledge points】

The surface of the eyeball is covered with a thin film of tears, called the tear film. Although the tear film is only 7um thick, its protective effect on the cornea and conjunctiva cannot be underestimated. People can apply tears to the surface of the eye through blinking (blinking), which can lubricate, moisturize, protect, resist bacteria and nourish the surface of the eyeball.

The 2020 Chinese Dry Eye Expert Consensus defines dry eye as: a chronic ocular surface disease caused by multiple factors, which is caused by abnormalities in tear quality, quantity and dynamics, leading to unstable tear film or imbalance of the ocular surface microenvironment, which may be accompanied by ocular surface inflammatory reactions, tissue damage and nerve abnormalities, causing a variety of ocular discomfort symptoms and (or) visual dysfunction. Therefore, the tear film is the basis for the eyes to obtain clear and stable vision. The symptoms of dry eyes are varied, the most common of which are dryness, foreign body sensation, burning sensation, red eyes and photophobia, blurred vision and visual fatigue.

【Advanced Small Classroom】

Why is it said that looking at a phone or computer for a long time can easily lead to dry eyes? Normal people blink 15-20 times per minute; when using a computer, they blink 5 times per minute.

When you are concentrating on playing games, you blink only about 3 times per minute. Therefore, people who use computers, mobile phones and watch TV for a long time will stare at one place for a long time, and the number of blinks will be significantly reduced, which will affect the secretion of tears and the quality of the tear film, thus causing dry eyes.

[How to replenish water for eyes]

First of all, we should maintain good living habits. In life, we should ensure adequate sleep, avoid staying up late, and let our eyes get enough rest; pay attention to a balanced diet, eat more vegetables, fruits, and drink water in moderation, so that our body can get enough water and vitamins; friends who smoke should quit smoking, and friends who do not smoke should reduce and avoid the environment of secondhand smoke; in addition, be careful not to stay in the air-conditioned environment for too long. When using air conditioning, you can add a humidifier, and the air outlet of the air conditioner should not be facing the eyes. Secondly, pay attention to eye hygiene, keep the eyes clean, and prevent the occurrence of inflammatory diseases of the eyes; reduce the time of using the eyes, especially the time of using mobile phones. In the process of using the eyes, generally use the eyes for 20-30 minutes to rest for a while, you can close your eyes and rest, or you can look into the distance; friends with myopia or presbyopia should wear suitable glasses, which can not only see clearly, but also not easily "tired"; when choosing glasses, pay attention to contact lenses can increase the risk of dry eyes, so you should try to reduce the wearing of contact lenses or reduce the time of wearing contact lenses. Finally, we can also take some physical methods to relieve the symptoms of dry eyes, such as: hot compress eyes, use 40 degrees hot towel or steam eye mask to heat eyes for 10-15 minutes, which can promote the secretion of oil by meibomian glands, reduce the evaporation of water in eyes, and relieve dryness; you can also take the active blinking method, practice blinking, increase the number of blinks...Prevent and relieve dry eyes, have you learned these methods? I hope it can be helpful to you. If you have symptoms such as red eyes, eye pain, decreased vision, photophobia and tearing, please go to the hospital in time to seek professional diagnosis and treatment from a doctor.