Eye Strain

Eyestrain

Eyestrain may result from a need for eyeglasses or from use of out- grown glasses. It may also result from unfavorable conditions under which the eyes arc used.

 Improper lighting, especially for reading or close work, frequent cause of strain

 Do not face the light; it should comefrom theback of you and from the side so you are not in shadow, make sure light bulbs are strong enough (75 to 100 watts) and free of dust. Hold a book or paper about 16 to 18 inches away from you and slightly below eye level. Reading when lying on your back in bed or propped up on an elbow may strain the eyes, and so will reading for long periods in a vibrating vehicle. Avoid glare, of course. 

And rest your eyes from time to time by shifting focus, looking off into the distance. Night Blindness Inability to see well or at all in dim light can mean something wrong not alone with the eyes but with the entire system. Night blindness, as it is called, is a threat to safety, particularly on the highway, because a driver may have 20/20 vision and not realize that his vision is somewhat impaired at night. The condition produces no discernible changes in eye tissues, so it cannot be diagnosed unless the patient tells the physician that he has difficulty in reading road signs at night or has trouble picking out objects in dimly lighted streets. 

It is not normal to have trouble seeing in dim light after a brief period, two to three minutes, of adjustment. If you become aware of such a problem, discuss it with your physician. It can be treated, sometimes simply by addition of vitaminA to the diet. Sunlight Good sunglasses can protect your eyes if you are in bright sunlight. Poor ones may only add to your troubles if you wear them for long. Don't wear glasses with scratches or irregularities. Some glasses are too lightly tinted to do much good. It's true that good sunglasses are expensive. 

The best have ground and polished lenses, and are worth the investment. Even though you wear sunglasses, do not look directly into the sun. Don't wear the glasses indoors and at night no matter how fashionable it may seem because accidents result from the reduced visual perceptiveness. If you use regular glasses, it is worthwhile to have a pair of sunglasses ground to your prescription rather than clip a pair of possibly inferior sunglasses over your carefully made regular glasses. 

Eye care - How to wash your eyes?

Eye care

It is not necessary to routinely wash the eyes, since nature has pro- vided for cleaning through the tear glands. 50 don't use eye drops or wash your eyes daily with any solution. Incidentally, boric acid does not deserve its reputation as an antiseptic for the eyes. All you need do to keep your eyes clean is to wash the skin around them, using a clean personal washcloth. 

Avoid rubbing your eyes with your fingers. Eye Injury You can't be too careful in guarding your eyes against accidents at home, work, and play. Impress the need on children. And always see a physician immediately if an eye has been hurt, since delay can mean blindness. One serious injury is that resulting from sun eclipses. There are still too many adults as well as children who are unaware of the danger, and many eyes continue to be damaged because of failure to view an eclipse properly.

For proper viewing, let the sun shine through an opening in one piece of cardboard onto another piece, where it will produce an image you can observe in safety. 

Keep the sun at your back. Commonly, of course, dirt, cinders, and other bits of foreign material get into the eyes. Remember that in children, especially in the excitement of play, a foreign body in the eye is often quickly forgotten, but some hours later there may be sensitivity to light, beginning redness, and a tendency to keep the lids closed. It's important to suspect a foreign body even though a child may not remember it. Blindly trying to wash out a foreign body may do little good.

The object may be trapped in small folds which the washingfluid does not reach. Pull the lower lid down and have the child look upward. This tends to open folds in the lower part of the eye and may reveal the object. To find an object under the upper lid can be more difficult. Have the child look downward while you hold the lashes of the upper lid and turn it inside out over an index finger. When objects lodge on the cornea, they may be more difficult to locate. If there is obvious irritation and yet no object can be found, it is advisable to have the child seen at once by your physician. 

Eye care

 It is foolhardy not to have regular examinations of the eyes-once a year after age 50, less often at younger ages. More and more now, examinations till glaucoma are being included in preventive medicine checkups. Cataracts can be removed surgically at any time and at practically any age. There is no need to wait for a cataract to become complete, or "ripe," as was once believed. Depending on the condition of the lens, the retina, and other factors, an occasional cataract will be treated without surgery. Eye Infections Today, even such severe chronic eye infections as trachoma can be cured with antibiotics and other medicines. 

Don't decide for yourself that an eye infection is nothing to worry about. Of course, there are minor eye infections. Most common is conjunctivitis, or pinkeye, which causes the eyes to redden and the lids to swell and usually stick together in the morning. Many home remedies are used. We think the best approach is:

(1) Wash the eye with warm water using a disposable tissue or cloth (otherwise the infection may be spread to the other eye or another person).

(2) Apply yellow oxide of mercury ophthalmic ointment generously on the lids, and close the eye. Use the ointment morning and night.

(3) Apply hot compresses, moistened with clean water, for five minutes} three or four times daily

If the eye does not improve quickly, see your physician. But if you may, on occasion, treat a mild case of pinkeye, it is unwise to diagnose and self-treat any other form of eye infection. 

Your eyes are simply too precious to be toyed with. If you can't reach a doctor and you find your eyes are severely inflamed or have pus in them, use this emergency measure: Put a generous amount of ophthalmic ointment containing penicillin or some other antibiotic on the inner lids, and then close the eyes so the ointment gets at the eyeballs. Repeat every three hours until you can get medical help. If your physician is not available, go to his hospital's emergency room.

 It is safe for you to treat an occasional style-a pimple-like formation in the tiny glands of the eyelid. Apply hot compresses every two hours for 15 minutes at a time. If the stye does not open and drain and heal in a few days, be sure to see your doctor. See him, too, if you have styes repeatedly. 

Cleaning the Eyes When the eyelids become irritated by wind or dust, you can relieve them by washing them with a warm salt solution, a level teaspoonful of alt to a pint of water. Be sure the utensils you use have been thoroughly leaned and scalded. You may use an eyedropper or eyecup, as you prefer.