7 Common Things That Can Damage Your Eyes and Vision Health

Sep 01, 2022

Eye health is one of the issues that people often overlook, especially when one has “good” eyesight. At the same time, it is a vital sense that the thought of losing it puts a lot of fear in our hearts. The reason is simple; we perceive over 80% of our environment via vision, so it means that you need to care for them.

Some eye conditions may arise from genetics, but many come due to poor care and bad habits. You will soon realize that some of your daily habits may damage your eyes and vision.

7 Things that Can Damage Your Eyes & Vision

So, our optometrist in Ryan Ranch has come up with a list of things that could damage your eyes.

1. Spending Too Much Time In Front of a Screen

We cannot deny that we must look at a screen at any time in the day. It comes with the era. We are tech-savvy, and almost everything we do involves looking at a computer, phone, or T.V.

There’s nothing wrong with these devices; however, our eyes were not designed for staring at them for the better part of the day and night. The average adult spends at least seven hours on a digital device these days.

Too much screen time leads to dry eye, digital eye strain, computer vision syndrome, and eventually, a decrease in vision clarity. Also, kids spend no less than five hours damaging their developing eyes.

If you also look at any screen before you sleep, you could be harming your eyes because light levels are changing rapidly, so your eyes have to work extra hard. Screens emit blue light, which could harm your eyes.

So, reduce the number of hours you spend in front of a screen. After every 20 minutes, give your eyes a break by looking at something else.

2. Smoking

As you already know, smoking affects almost every part of your body, including your eyes. Smoking causes several eye issues such as macular degeneration, a severe eye condition affecting your central vision. Your central vision is essential for viewing objects clearly and performing everyday tasks such as driving or reading. You might also not recognize faces.

You can also develop cataracts, which cause blurry vision and, over time, vision loss. Other eye issues linked to smoking are dry eyes, uveitis, and diabetic retinopathy.

3. Rubbing Your Eyes

Do you rub your eyes quite often? If you do, this could be a problem for your eyesight. Your eyes have tiny delicate vessels that frequent friction could break the tiny vessels under the skin’s surface, causing a puffy appearance or dark circles.

Also, it can lead to keratoconus, thinning of the cornea, because of scratching the cornea over an extended period.

You can also develop eye infections such as pink eye or conjunctivitis. Our eye doctor in Monterey suggests using saline or water to rinse your eyes if you feel something in them.

4. Not Wearing Sunglasses

A pair of shades is always an accessory or a fashion statement. But they serve a bigger purpose, and that is protecting the eyes from U.V. Did you know that a day on the beach without eye protection could lead to sunburn of the eye (photokeratitis)?

Other conditions that may arise due to exposing your eyes to U.V are cancer of the eyelids, eye, and the skin around the eye, cataracts, and pterygium.

5. Using Contact Lenses Wrongly

Most contact lens wearers fail to adhere to proper hygiene instructions, which can pose a great risk to your vision and eye health.

One common mistake is failing to store and clean the lenses as directed by our optometrist in Ryan Ranch. Another issue is some people sleep in contact (not approved for overnight use) which can lead to an eye infection.

6. Not Getting Enough Sleep

Your eyes need to get enough rest. If you don’t rest or sleep well, your eyes can cause red, bloodshot eyes, eye spasms, dark circles, and blurry vision. Your vision and overall health will be affected when you don’t get enough rest.

7. Not Having Regular Exams

Most people skip regular eye exams at our eye clinic near you because their eyes are okay. The problem is that other diseases such as glaucoma often don’t have warning signs until the issue has progressed and is irreversible. But routine eye exams could catch such issues before they escalate.

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