Can your New Year’s celebration do harm to your eyes?

 

It is late December and now we are looking towards the New Year’s celebrations. Some of us may overdo it. The more you drink the more severe your hangover symptoms the next morning. The symptoms come from a physiological response to the presence of alcohol in your digestive and urinary systems - your stomach, kidneys, and bloodstream. 

When you overindulge in alcohol:

• The alcohol causes blood vessels in the eyes to get larger and fill with blood that creates a red bloodshot appearance.
• Alcohol can stimulate the eye muscles causing the eyelids to twitch.
• Alcohol slows the communication between the brain’s neurotransmitters causing distorted or double vision.
• Alcohol is a diuretic, meaning it increases the flow of urine, alcohol dehydrates the body so after consuming alcohol one wakes up with dry irritated eyes.
• Alcohol decreases the constricting of the pupils at the correct levels according to the amount of light surrounding them. This affects the eye’s ability to detect contrast which is the difference between light and dark by about 30%.
• Alcohol can make the eyes extremely sensitive to light.
• Prolonged alcohol use can eventually damage the optic nerve. 

Now that you know some of the effects of consuming excessive amounts of alcohol on the eyes and the body. It is wise for someone to limit their consumption of alcohol to special occasions. When enjoyed in moderation, alcohol will not cause permanent damage to your eyesight. 

I would be remiss in my duty as a doctor if I did not remind everyone of the harm to yourself and others by driving under the influence of alcohol. All the physiological responses discussed earlier in this blog can affect driving skills. If you find yourself having overindulged give up the keys, call for a rideshare or a cab, stay at a friend’s place or a hotel, the effects of alcohol consumption can have lasting ramifications for others. All the short-term symptoms you have can kill or harm someone else. 

Have a safe and happy new year! 

#eyegotcha

#PittsburghEyeCare

#PittsburghOptometrist 

Sources:

www.healthline.com

www.insighteye.com

www.yoursightmatters.com

Image: www.brianjsmithesq.com

Merry Quizmas – True or False

 1. The Dutch version of Santa Claus, called Sinterklaas, lives in the South Pole rather than the North Pole.

False – He is actually said to live in Spain.

2. In Russia, Santa Claus is known as Grandfather Frost.

True –His Russian name is Dod Moroz which directly translates to Grandfather Frost.

3.  Jingle Bells was the first song ever broadcast from Space.

True- The crew from Gemini 6 performed a rendition of the song 12/16/65

4. The first-ever candy canes had green & white stripes.

False-In fact the first candy canes no stripes. Candy canes have been traditional since 1670. Stripes weren’t added until the 1900s

5. The Carol “We wish you a Merry Christmas” commemorates the European tradition of Wassailing.

True- The song's demand for figgy pudding reflected the occasionally aggressive nature of the wassailers asking for food.

#MerryQuizmas

#eyegotcha

#PittsburghEyeCare

#PittsburghOptometrist

Why do some people sleep with their eyes open?

 

Image: https://shutr.bz/3pXeaUI

People usually sleep with their eyes open because of a problem with the facial muscles, nerves, or the skin around the eyelids. This condition is known as nocturnal lagophthalmos. One or both eyes can be affected. Many people who sleep with their eyes open don't realize it. People who sleep with their eyes open usually find out by being told by someone else, mentioning that your eyelids don't fully shut when you sleep or that you sleep with one eye open, or you may find yourself waking up with dry irritated eyes. Others may experience symptoms like:

• Dry or gritty feeling eyes
• Irritation or burning
• Redness
• Blurred vision
• Sensitivity to light

Nocturnal lagophthalmos can have many causes including:

• Faulty eyelid mechanics
• Stroke
• Bell's Palsy
• Blepharoplasty (Cosmetic Eyelid Surgery)
• Neuromuscular diseases
• Head or facial trauma injury
• Hyperthyroidism
• Use of alcohol and/or sleeping pills

Over time Nocturnal lagophthalmos can lead to health problems. Aside from normal fatigue, grumpiness, and brain fog. The longer a person goes on sleeping poorly, the mental effects become more serious:

• Difficulty concentrating
• Feeling down
• Risk of injury and accidents at home, at work, or on the road

If it persists even longer, general health will start to deteriorate:

• High blood pressure
• Lower immunity
• Diabetes
• Clinical depression
• Heart disease
• Lower sex drive
• Decreased fertility

If nighttime lagophthalmos is suspected talk to your doctor to try to find the cause. Sometimes treatment will be lifestyle changes. Sometimes treatment methods are as simple as using devices to shut your eyelids at night, such as eyelid tape or weights, other treatments are more extreme such as surgery.

#SleepWithEyesOpen

#eyegotcha

#PittsburghEyeCare

#PittsburghOptometrist



Sources:

www.clevelandclinic.org

www.medicalnewstoday.com

www.sleepfoundation.org

www.webmd.com

www.NIH.gov

Red eye in photos

 

Image: www.photo-works.net

As the holidays' approach and families get together, photos will be taken. In many of those photos, the subjects will appear to have one or both eyes show red.

Red-eye in photos is caused by light reflecting off of the retina. The retina is a layer of tissue in the back of the eye that senses light. Generally, it happens in low-light conditions when a flash is used.

People with light-colored eyes tend to get red-eye more often. The reason is the amount of melanin a person has. A person with high melanin levels tend to have dark eyes and skin that absorb more light.


Can you prevent redeye in a photo?

• Tell your subjects not to look directly at the camera.
• If possible make the room brighter.
• Turn on the anti-red eye function or preflash, if your camera has this feature.
• Move the flash and the lens further apart if possible.
• Make sure your subjects aren’t drunk. Alcohol slows response time, this applies to the eye responding to the flash.

When using digital photography, there are ways to fix red-eye in photos by using photo editing software and apps, like Photoshop. It is made relatively easy to do. Many Android and iPhones have photo editing apps built into your gallery to fix photos.

In most cases red-eye in photos means nothing. There have been cases noted of redeye in photos being a tip-off to other issues.
A common condition that can cause red eye is Strabismus, which is when both eyes don’t work in sync. Only one eye will appear red in this case since both eyes will not be looking at the same point when the flash happens.

So if you notice a single person with a red-eye in many photos, more than other people it may be good to mention this to them. If the eyes are looking more white or yellow than red it could indicate something more serious. You can put your mind at ease, schedule an eye exam to determine if it is a serious condition or just bad lighting?

#eyegotcha

#PittsburghEyeCare

#PittsburghOptometrist

#RedEye

Sources:

https://brightside.me/

www.defianceoptometricgroup.com

www.allaboutvision.com

www.dailyrecord.co.uk