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Blinking is Something We All Do, but Did You Know it Plays an Integral Role in Maintaining Good Eye Health?

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For many of us, blinking is just something humans do, but it actually plays a major role in maintaining good eye health. Due to the liquid nature of our eyes, debris frequently gets stuck on the ocular surface of the eye quite easily. The eyelids help to clean this ocular surface every time we blink, meanwhile supplying fresh tears and nutrients across the surface of the eye helping to prevent dry eye symptoms.

The average person blinks 24 times per minute, but this number takes a drastic dip when using a digital device. While we use digital devices our blinks per minute (BPM) drops by about 50%, making our BPM fall to as low as 10 BPM. The dramatic drop in BPM causes the eye to get strained, sore, and dry.

Without the eyelid providing consistent blinks, the debris that builds up on the surface of the eye can continue to build up and eventually cause damages. You will also begin to accumulate an annoying amount of floaters in your vision.

Your eyelids use tears to clean the surface of your eye, but most of the years used are gathered by the lower eyelid. When you blink your eyes the lower eyelid is supposed to pull the years up across your eye and then when your lids meet the upper lid caries the tears the rest of the away. Most of us probably take the action of blinking for granted and assume that there is no way to mess it up, but in all actuality it is possible to blink incorrectly. You can test to see if you are blinking correctly, just rest your forefinger sideways, pointing towards your nose, under your eye above your cheek bone. When you blink, your eyelashes on your upper lid should just gently brush your finger.

Proven method, give it a try! But most of all, don’t forget to blink.

Written by Dr. Ravi Nrusimhadevara

Dr. Ravi Nrusimhadevara graduated as an ophthalmologist and has been practicing since 1999. He underwent a fellowship in diseases of retina and vitreous at the University of Toronto. and thereafter started practicing in Saskatoon in 2004. His special interests are diseases of the retina, advanced cataract surgery, pupillary reconstructions, sutured and sutureless scleral fixation of intraocular lenses, and refractive surgery.

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