The hormonal shifts and fluctuations that happen during perimenopause and menopause are normally associated with symptoms like hot flashes, anxiety, meno belly and mood swings, but you’ll be surprised to hear that they can also have alarming effects on many other parts of the body, including your eyes.
“Dry eye, blurred vision, blepharitis, hooded eyes, increased lines around the eyes, eyebags, contact lens discomfort, gritty eye, red eyes…” are some of the most common eye-related symptoms that women might experience during menopause, explains Consultant Ophthalmic and Oculoplastic Surgeon, Dr. Elizabeth Hawkes. But it's 'dry eye syndrome’, which happens when your eyes do not produce enough tears or when your tears evaporate too quickly that a lot of women find comes on them almost overnight.
'Dry eye syndrome' affects up to sixty-one percent of perimenopausal and menopausal women, and it’s a condition that can make your eyes not only feel dry, but also gritty. Some women say that ‘dry eye syndrome’ feels like you have something actually lodged in your eyes - and complain that the white parts of their eyes look red and bloodshot.
Many women also complain that the dryness they feel in their eyes makes them rub them more which can then lead to blurry vision, especially after prolonged reading or computer use. And this can also effect women who wear contact lenses as they can become really uncomfortable. “Increased dryness may lead to increased eye allergies too,” explains Elizabeth. “With less tears to flush the allergens away from the eyes, symptoms may worsen.”
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But there is good news! If you're finding that menopause is affecting the health of your eyes, Elizabeth suggests trying some preventive measures to protect your eye health, and taking daily supplements is great way to start. “Omega 3 is proven to improve the symptoms of dry eyes after just twelve weeks,” Elizabeth explains to HELLO!. “And Vitamin E and Vitamin C all help the ocular surface - the actual eyeball - stay hydrated too.”
© Prostock-studioElizabeth also recommends that menopausal women should try following the ‘20-20-20’ rule during screen time. This means that for every 20 minutes on your phone, computer or tablet, you should take a break and look at something that's at least 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. This allows your eye muscles to relax after focusing on a screen for a long time and helps treat and prevent dry eyes.
Practising lid hygiene helps too. Elizabeth explains that this involves gently massaging the upper and lower eyelids with a warm compress, to not only help remove debris and leftover makeup from the lids and eyelashes, but it will also improve the health of the tear ducts too.
“It’s also really important to have regular eye checks with the optician every year” explains Elizabeth. “Many eye conditions are sub clinical, which means that you can detect early changes before the clinical signs manifest. Prevention is better than cure!”
