Top Eye Care Concerns You’ve Probably Googled!

Have you woken up feeling fine, but two puffy, red eyes are staring back at you in the mirror? Have you arrived at a special event or travel destination feeling exhilarated, but your watery, irritated eyes make you look miserable? Are you curious why the whites of your eyes look more like a soft shade of buttercup?

Don’t worry! You’re not alone.

At Murine®, we celebrate your amazing eyes every day, but we also know when they aren’t looking and feeling right, you want answers to your ocular frustrations. Even though your eyes are uniquely yours, many people tend to have the similar eye care questions.

TODAY WE’RE GOING TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE MOST COMMON EYE-RELATED QUESTIONS YOU’VE PROBABLY GOOGLED. 

“WHY ARE MY EYES RED?” AND “WHY ARE MY EYES BURNING?”

These are among the top questions people Google, because red and burning eyes are simply no fun. Not only do they look bad and prevent you from presenting your best self to the world, but they’re also uncomfortable and painful. Unhappy-looking red eyes – or bloodshot eyes – can keep you from enjoying your normal activities, be it work or play.

So why do we get red eyes? Red eyes can be triggered by a variety of eye-unfriendly conditions like a lack of sleep, allergens, too much screen time, eye fatigue, dry environments, airplane travel, activities in the sun or wind. The list goes on and on.

Your eyes look red due to the tiny blood vessels on the surface of your eyes. When your cornea (eye tissue) doesn’t get enough oxygen, those blood vessels become enlarged. In most cases, red eyes are not harmful and can be soothed with eye drops like Murine Irritation and Redness Relief that quickly help constrict the blood vessels and lubricate your eyes to ease symptoms.

Sometimes red eyes feel even worse than they look. Burning or stinging is a very common symptom that accompanies red, irritated eyes. Symptoms of dry eyes include burning, so in order to get complete relief, you need to ease your dry eyes.

When your eyes are dry, your lacrimal glands kick into overdrive to produce more tears. This is a natural reflex in your body that’s intended to “fix” the problem. What ends up happening is your eyes continue to feel dry, but they start watering too, which amplifies the burning sensation. Since it’s human nature to wipe or rub watery eyes, you make things worse by touching or rubbing the sensitive skin around your eyes.

Your natural tears provide temporary relief, but an OTC eye drop like Murine Advanced Dry Eye Relief Eye Drops  will give your eyes the extra boost of moisture they need to stop the cycle of dryness and burning.

“WHY DO MY EYES HURT?”

Sometimes redness and irritation are not your main eye care concerns. You want to know why your eyes hurt and how to make it stop. This type of “hurt” is not due to something being in your eye or pain on the surface. It’s a discomfort deeper in the eye or in the area “behind” your eyes.

It’s not a sharp pain, but a dull, achy sensation that makes your eyes feel tired or overworked. All you really want to do is close them; because that’s the only way they feel comfortable. And that’s probably exactly what you should do, because your symptoms could be caused by eyestrain, also called tired eyes.

Eyestrain can occur due to too much screen time, focus fatigue from staring at a computer, working in bad lighting and driving long distances. Anything you do that doesn’t give your eyes a break can cause that achy sensation or the feeling that you can’t keep your eyes open. Taking a screen/device break every 20 minutes, blinking slowly or resting your eyes is the best way to ease symptoms. 

“WHY ARE MY EYES WATERY?”

Watery eyes can be an annoying and problematic symptom, which is why it’s also a top Google search about eye care. The main issue with watery eyes is once they start watering, it seems impossible to make them stop. Dabbing your eyes with a tissue or wiping them doesn’t help.

If you have watery eyes, your eyes are producing too many tears in an effort to moisturize them. Think of it as part of your body’s natural defence system. But when you have dry eyes, those tears aren’t substantial enough to provide relief. Your natural tears consist of the perfect combination of oils, mucus and secretions. When working properly, every blink provides a fresh blanket of moisture.

“WHY ARE MY EYES PUFFY?”

This is a common question, because even with the brightest of eyes, if they look puffy, you don’t feel at the top of your game. Puffy eyes can be blamed on all sorts of things, but if you just woke up and you’re wondering how to ease symptoms, there are a few things you can do.

The tissue around your eyes is sensitive to changes in your body, diet, stress level and environment. Whether it’s from a lack of sleep, seasonal allergies, too much fun, crying or eating too many salty foods, you can ease puffy eyes with non-prescription eye drops, like Murine®, and a cool compress.

Let’s say you’re slightly dehydrated or your salt balance is off a bit. For some people, these changes can be seen in the eye tissue below your eyes or even on the tissue above your eyes. The result is puffy looking eyes. If it happens in the morning, swelling should naturally subside simply by being upright if there are no underlying causes like illness or infection.

“WHY AREN’T MY EYES WHITE?”

Have you ever wondered why the whites of your eyes aren’t gleaming white? It’s actually a commonly Googled eye care concern! There are different reasons why the whites of your eyes may not look as bright as you think they should. If they appear to be dull or yellowish, it’s time to give them some extra TLC.

The white part of your eye is called the sclera. It’s serves as a tougher, protective layer of your eye to protect it and help it keep its structure. The sclera is made up of collagen and fibers that have some elasticity. What’s interesting about the sclera is your overall diet and healthy lifestyle choices can help keep the yellowish tinge of colour out of sight.

One of the best way to keep your eyes bright and beautiful is to focus on eating a diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables, especially dark leafy greens like kale and spinach. Go easy on alcohol, refined sugars and caffeine.  You can also try Murine® Bright & Moist Eye Drops that instantly moistures and brightens your eyes so they look radiant and feel revived.

Now that so many people are working from home, you no longer have the cues you would have in an office to take breaks or to stop working at the end of the day. Not only does this result in letting work creep into your personal life, it can also be rough on your eyes.

Working at home can lead to increased screen time. For example:

• You may immediately check your phone or email when you wake up in the morning

• You have no commute, so you get right to work.

• You’re staring at your computer for longer periods of time because you’re not being called into in-person meetings

• You’re not being interrupted by colleagues walking by and engaging you in conversation

• You’re helping your kids with their online homework

• You’re staying longer at your desk because there’s nowhere else to go

When you do stop working, because you’re spending more hours at home than usual, chances are good that you’re watching a movie or TV or having online meet-ups with your friends and extended family. Translation? You’re still staring at a screen!

Often, even before the end of the day, your eyes may be looking red and feeling dry, itchy, tired or burning. The good news is you can relieve all of these symptoms with eye drops.

Murine ® Dry & Tired eye drops offers fast relief up to 8 hours from overworked, tired and dry eyes. Soothing relief in the form of eye drops specially formulated with two lubricants to help hydrate, refresh and provide comfort against further irritation and dryness.

You can also prevent some eye strain just by making minor adjustments to your day. We know you’re juggling a lot right now, so you may not be able to do all the things on this list. That’s okay. Choose what works best for you—every little bit helps.  Here are a few tips to relieve eye strain:

PLACE YOUR COMPUTER MONITOR AT OR SLIGHTLY BELOW EYE LEVEL.

If you’re using a laptop, you may want to use a separate monitor that’s placed higher than your laptop to ease the strain on your eyes and neck. You can also place your laptop on a riser, so it’s a few inches above your table or desk, and use a separate keyboard.

REDUCE GLARE ON THE SCREEN.

Most homes have something many offices do not—sunlight! Working in good natural light is often easier on your eyes—and more refreshing for your soul—than working under fluorescent office lighting. Beware, though, glare is a common cause of eye strain, no matter what the source of light. Position your workspace so sunlight or home lighting does not cause a glare on your computer screen. If you can’t adjust your workspace, especially at certain times of the day when sun streams in, at least adjust your window shades, blinds or curtains and use indoor lighting instead.

TAKE BREAKS.

As mentioned already, without the normal cues in an office space filled with coworkers, it can be easy to work through a few hours straight at home without taking a break away from your computer screen. Schedule breaks into your day, if necessary, or set a timer on your computer or phone that reminds you to look up, get up and walk around.

If you can’t leave your desk or workspace at least once an hour, be sure to give your eyes a break every 20 minutes. Look at an object—in your home or outside your window—at least 20 feet away for 20 seconds. Roll your eyes clockwise and counter clockwise to help you refocus and relieve eye strain.

DON’T FORGET TO BLINK!

Did you know you blink much less when looking at a screen? Blinking is your body’s natural way of replenishing the moisture in your eyes, which helps keep them from becoming dry and irritated. When you blink, tears spread across your eyes to clean, moisturize and protect your eyes and vision. Remind yourself to blink throughout the day, especially if your feel your eyes drying out. If blinking alone doesn’t help relieve your dry eyes, try Murine® Advanced Dry Eye Relief a clinically proven and preservative free formula that provides immediate, long lasting relief and protection of dry and irritated eyes.

Most importantly, as you’re working from home during this challenging time, give yourself a break. Being less than perfect during a global pandemic is more than okay. Take care of yourself and your loved ones, and know that while you’re working and staying at home, you really are making a difference.

Source: Murine