Are your eyes dry? It might be because of your screen time!

You spend the day on the computer at the office (or these days, at home). On your break, you scroll through social media on your phone. And in the evening, you watch a few episodes of your favourite TV series. No wonder your eyes feel dry. You’re probably part of the 30% of the population who suffer from dry eyes. But you just didn’t know it.

When your blink rate decreases

If you spend more than 5 hours a day in front of your screens, you may experience dry eye because your eyes are hypnotized by the screens. Your natural reflex to blink is drastically reduced, if not almost absent. And yet, blinking frequently is essential for the Meibomian glands in your eyelids. These glands secrete an oil that hydrates your eye by covering the underlying tear film and preventing the water from evaporating. But when you decrease how much you blink, the glands are no longer stimulated. They eventually clog up and can even atrophy in the long run. This is why dry eye disease requires clinical treatment in 85% of patients.

Their blinking reflex is underdevelopped

No! Having dry eyes can happen at any age. Especially with young people being constantly connected to their phones or other screens. Dry eye has become frequent, since young people are now growing up with screens, and they develop the blinking reflex less. So young eyes can also suffer from dryness.

6 Signs You May Be Suffering from Dry Eye

1. Your eyes itch as if you had a grain of sand in them.
2. Your eyes are runny and the tearing causes redness.
3. You have a feeling of dryness and burning in the eyes.
4. Your eyes are sensitive to light and your vision is unstable.
5. You feel like you have a film over your eyes.
6. You have difficulty tolerating your contact lenses.

If you have dry eyes, you may think you need new corrective lenses, but this is not always the case. The problem can be caused by your cornea being very irritated and irregular or the tear film is unstable.

We can relieve obstruction of the Meibomian glands

At Eye Am, we use three technologies to solve dry eye problems.
With iLux or LipiFlow, we can unblock your Meibomian glands and liquefy the accumulated secretions using heat and pressure on the eyelids. We also use IPL technology to treat acne rosacea and its secondary inflammation. By emitting pulsed light, we cause necrosis of abnormal blood vessels, thereby reducing secondary inflammation.

Among the solutions to treat dry eyes, there are also lubricating drops, cortisone-based drops as well as immunomodulators. For more severe cases of dry eye, we prescribe scleral lenses to protect the surface of the cornea.

Dry Eye Detection and Assessment Is a Good Idea

The use of Meibography allows your optometrist to get an image of your Meibomian glands to check for obstruction and atrophy. They can also assess the quality and quantity of your tears, and check the surface of your eye for signs of inflammation.

These in-depth examinations will identify the cause of your dry eye; either water deficiency, lipid deficiency, or both. Whatever the problem, your optometrist will offer you a personalized treatment plan to manage and correct dry eye in the short, medium and long term.

Technology: The Problem and the Solution for Dry Eye

In short, computers, cellphones, remote work or distance learning are all well and good, but all of these technologies cause other problems. As we overuse our screens, we tend to blink less and our eyes get dry. Unfortunately, dry eye is a serious problem that can get worse over time. But there are technological solutions to treat it. That being said, prevention is still the key. The best way to maintain optimal vision is to schedule a dry eye assessment!

Now that you’re better informed, take a break from your screen… your eyes really need it.