Your Dry Eye Might Not Be a Tear Problem

If drops haven't fixed your dry eye, the problem may not be your tears at all.

Most people think of eyelids as cosmetic. Medically, they're part of your lubrication system. Every blink spreads tears across the cornea like a windshield wiper, which is why long hours on screens, when we blink less, let the tear film break up and symptoms build through the day.

Inside your eyelids are oil glands called meibomian glands, about 25 to 30 in each lid. Every blink squeezes them and pumps oil into the tear film, and that oil is what slows evaporation. Most dry eye isn't caused by a shortage of watery tears. It's caused by tears evaporating too quickly because the oil layer is weak.

Sleep matters, too. About one in five people sleep with their eyes partially open, and most don't know it. If the tear film is already unstable, that overnight exposure can mean waking up with burning eyes, blurry vision or pain, and inflamed oil glands can leave the lids feeling gunky in the morning.

If you've been chasing dry eye with drops and it isn't getting better, don't ignore your eyelids. They're worth asking your eye doctor about.

Read the full post: The Real Cause of Dry Eye Nobody Talks About: Your Eyelids

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