What causes dry eyes? Can Chinese medicine treat it?

Author: Qiu Lixin, Chief Physician, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University

Vice Chairman of the Ophthalmology Branch of the Chinese Association of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Reviewer: Wei Junping, Chief Physician, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences

Many people experience dry eyes, fatigue, and a foreign body sensation after looking at computers or reading for a long time. Some are also afraid of wind and light, which may be caused by dry eye syndrome.

Dry eye syndrome has been recorded in ancient Chinese medical literature for a long time. It is called white and sticky syndrome, or the syndrome of the drying up of the divine water.

Dry eyes are mainly caused by problems with the quality and quantity of tears, which lead to many symptoms, such as red eyes and secretions; dry eyes and fatigue, which become more and more fatigued the more you use your eyes; fear of light and wind; sometimes itching and sometimes pain. Dry eyes do not always cause no tears or less tears. Some people even cry a lot, and some people also have blurred vision, feeling that everything is blurry, but their vision is normal.

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1. What causes dry eyes?

The causes of dry eyes are very complex and numerous.

Western medicine believes that chronic inflammation of the eye, such as conjunctivitis, allergic eye diseases, blockage of the meibomian gland duct, blepharitis, etc., can all lead to dry eyes. Systemic diseases, such as diabetes, multiple sclerosis, Sjögren's syndrome, etc., can also cause dry eyes. Drug abuse, excessive use of eye drops, wearing contact lenses, dry weather, long-term driving, long-term use of computers and mobile phones, etc., can all lead to dry eyes.

Traditional Chinese medicine focuses on internal factors in understanding dry eyes, such as improper diet, imbalanced hunger and satiety, poor sleep, prolonged use of the eyes, long periods of sitting, and bad mood, which may be the cause of dry eyes. Traditional Chinese medicine has long recorded dry eyes, and there are ways to treat them.

When treating dry eyes, TCM not only considers local problems of the eyes, but also connects the eyes with the internal organs of the body. It not only considers the symptoms of the eyes, but also more deeply observes and thinks about the changes in the internal organs of the body.

Because the imbalance in the body will not only cause eye problems, patients will usually have other symptoms. For example, if someone likes to eat sweets, we have to consider whether he has spleen deficiency. If someone drinks strong tea and coffee for a long time and likes to eat spicy hot pot and boiled fish, we have to consider whether he has lung heat.

In addition, we must also combine the patient's sleep conditions, bowel movements, etc. to comprehensively determine where the problem is with the patient, and then use medication based on the patient's specific situation.

2. How does traditional Chinese medicine treat dry eyes?

Traditional Chinese medicine treats dry eyes mainly by regulating the internal organs through internal administration, and then uses fumigation and washing to relieve local eye symptoms, thereby achieving the goal of improving both physical and eye symptoms.

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Depending on the patient's condition, acupuncture, moxibustion and other methods may also be considered, but oral administration is currently the main way for TCM to treat dry eye. Regardless of the treatment method, patients must operate under the guidance of a doctor.

3. Does traditional Chinese medicine require long-term medication to treat dry eyes?

Long-term bad living habits will lead to an imbalance in physical condition, which cannot be easily adjusted with a dozen or twenty doses of medicine. You need to take medicine for a long time to slowly adjust the body, and then the eye symptoms will improve.

Some patients may just need to take the medicine for a period of time to get better, while some patients may need to take it longer, depending on the situation.

Can TCM be used in conjunction with Western medicine to treat dry eyes? Yes, TCM focuses on regulating the internal organs, while Western medicine focuses on regulating the external organs. When taking TCM, you can also use artificial tears to relieve dry eyes. One is an external treatment, and the other is an internal treatment.

Traditional Chinese medicine can improve dry eye syndrome by treating the symptoms. Complete cure is also possible, depending on the patient's specific situation. Young patients can take some medicine and adjust their lifestyle. The chances of recovery are very high. If you don't pay attention after recovery, the chances of getting dry eye syndrome again are also very high.

To prevent dry eyes, you must improve your lifestyle, change bad eating habits, avoid sitting for long periods of time, and get up and move around every thirty minutes.