Will My Dry Eyes Get Worse This Winter?
During the winter, do your eyes feel dry and irritated? Do you like to sit by the fire?
Sure, it may be Florida, but the nights still get a little chilly here! Dry eye is one of the most common complaints people have, no matter what state you live in.
Experiencing colder temperatures means that you get drier air and cold wind outdoors and dry air indoors from having the heat on. This is the perfect storm to cause your eyes to become irritated.
When your eyes feel dry from colder weather, it’s a lot worse for people that wear contacts or have dry eye syndrome. People develop dry eyes because their eyes produce tears that are low-quality or they produce too many tears.
Experiencing cold or dry weather can decrease the moisture levels in your eyes. With dry eyes, you may experience symptoms like burning, itching, or general irritation.
With these symptoms, you may want to rub your eyes to make them feel better, but that’s the worst thing to do. Other symptoms you could experience include an overproduction of tears.
This means that your eyes are overcompensating by increasing tear production to balance out the lack of quality tears. Dry eyes can cause blurry vision too.
Ultimately, in the winter, the weather and temperature changes indoors and outdoors can make your dry eye worse. Keep reading for some things to do to keep your eyes hydrated during the winter!
Drink Water
Staying hydrated during the winter helps keep your entire body hydrated and keep the moisture in your eyes. Having eyes that are properly hydrated and lubricated will help keep them comfortable.
Keep Your Eyes Moist
Besides drinking enough water, you should use artificial tears or eye drops to keep your eyes hydrated during the winter. Use them a few times a day to help counteract dry indoor and outdoor conditions.
Humidifiers
If you can feel that the air is drier or you are cranking the heat in your house, you should use a humidifier. Humidifiers put moisture back into the air, so if you spent a lot of time indoors during the winter you should use one.
Put them in rooms that you spend the most time, like your bedroom or living room.
Avoid Heat Blowing on Your Face
Being near a heater or hairdryer blowing close to your eyes can dry them out. Try to move or angle them away from your face.
Hot air blowing right on your eyes can dry them out. If you enjoy fires inside or outside, you need to make sure you sit further away from them to prevent your eyes getting too dry or uncomfortable.
Reduce Screen Time
These days, you may use a screen for almost everything. Although screen usage is common, you should reduce your screen time when possible.
When you look at screens for extended periods of time, you stop blinking as often as you should to keep your eyes hydrated. This dries out your eyes because blinking helps moisturize your eyes.
More people have been dealing with this issue because of the increase in working from home. Whenever you spend time in front of a digital device, make sure to practice the 20-20-20 rule.
This means that every 20 minutes, look 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. Following this will help your eyes reset.
Trying these tips will help make winter more enjoyable and help your eyes feel more comfortable!
Are you tired of your eyes being dry? Schedule an appointment at Ginsberg Eye in Naples, FL, today!
