Patients often ask: “What can I do about keeping my eyes healthy?”
Well you certainly cannot change your genetic makeup, so to a certain extent we are programmed to follow a predetermined pathway, but…
We have all heard the expression: “We are what we eat!”
There are a lot of supplements that we could discuss but we will restrict this to Dry Eyes, as the website is called DryEyes.com.au, after all.
The major cause dry eyes is meibomian gland dysfunction, where the meibomian glands of the eye lids block up. This consequently causes a lack of oil in the tear film, which allows the watery component of the tear film to evaporate.
Omega 3 oils (Fish Oil) have been shown to help this condition – sometimes dramatically. Of all the people we start with Omega 3 supplements the success rate specifically for dry eyes is around 50%.
What does this actually mean?
It means that 50% of people that start taking Omega 3 for dry eyes will perceive a significant reduction in their symptoms. So what happens to the other 50%?
We recommend that they also continue taking it , as Omega 3 is beneficial for general health as well.
Numerous studies have shown that Omega 3 helps reduce the incidence of:
- Strokes
- Heart disease
- Alzheimers
- Skin conditions
- Allergies
- Asthma
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Dry Eyes
- Macular Degeneration
- And even learning difficulties in children can be helped!
What does this seemingly unrelated laundry list of conditions have in common with Omega 3 (Fish Oil)?
The answer seems to be cellular structure. Every cell in your body needs Omega 3 to function properly. Possibly when Omega 3 is lacking your cells do not function properly and this then can lead to all sorts of problems – Dry Eyes being just one of many.
Often we are asked which Omega 3 supplement do we recommend. There is a simple answer for someone that looks after eyes – Thera Tears Nutrition. This combines high quality Fish Oil, Flaxseed Oil and Vitamin E to create the perfect blend for Dry Eyes. The dosage is 3 capsules per day and to get maximum absorption without it repeating on you, it is best to have a capsule or two in the middle of a meal.
