You must have been warned at one time against rubbing your eyes by your mother. The reason is that rubbing your eyes is not good for your eye corneal health. Perhaps if you were thinking that your mother was bothering you, then you need to understand that this fact that has been supported by recent research studies. Our discussion about rubbing referred to here as a hard rub, is by using your finger or your knuckles for a long period of time.
Rubbing Causes Eye Pressure to Rise
Some people after rubbing their eyes, their eye pressure returns to normal shortly after. For others, especially those with eye conditions, any increase in their eye pressure can bring severe eye problems. This is the case for people with myopia (shortsightedness). In some cases, their retinas tend to detach from the back of their eyes. People with glaucoma are also affected by increase in eye pressure because it interferes with blood flow in their eyes, damaging the nerves and impairing their sight.
Transfer of Allergens to your Eyes
When you rub your eyes with your finger or knuckles, there is a high probability that you will transfer allergens such as pollen from your eyelashes to the eye surface. This may not serve you well especially if you have problems with allergies. You may end up with severe discomfort for an extended period of time.
Transfer of Germs to your Eyes
There is also the risk of transferring germs from the finger or knuckle to your eyes during a rub. Such germs can increase the risk of creating eye infections. You can easily avoid such infections by simply keeping your hands away from your eyes.
Keratoconus
It is believed that eye rubbing can lead to a condition whereby the cornea tears, weakens and pushes forward to be more conical. This is what is termed keratoconus and is believed to be caused by eye rubbing. Genetics may also play a role in this condition. Once you rub your eyes, you are exposing your cornea to risk and with more pressure, excess fluid can make it swell. When this happens over a period of time the cornea tears, weakens, and becomes more conical. This can affect your eyesight severely, forcing you to seek medical attention when you could have avoided it.
Although there are moments when it seems impossible for you not to run your eyes, just remember that making this a regular habit could be detrimental to your eye health.
