Could Fasting Cause Dry Eyes?

If a person has decided to go through the process of fasting, then he must renounce all or some kind of fluids and food intake, for a certain period. A person can choose to fast because of a variety of reasons, which are liable to include health issues. The process of fasting is an arduous one because it requires peace of mind during the whole period. Certain studies have found that fasting has numerous health benefits, which include the natural cleansing of toxic materials from the body and attainment of a sense of calmness by the person. But this process has some complications also, which are significantly associated with it. However, it has also been found that if a person has been fasting for an extensive period of time, then he is liable to develop certain health-related issues and the problem of “Dry eyes” is among them. When the correct amount of lubrication is not being provided by tears, then that person is most likely to develop “Dry eyes Syndrome”. The tears of a person, carry a certain amount of proteins,  and when the proportion of protein changes, then a person develops the eye-related ailment, known as “Dry eyes”. And if the person is fasting, even after developing the dry eyes syndrome, then he can face severe eye-related issues in the near future. The symptoms of dry eyes include:-

  • A scorching sense of inflammation in the eyes.
  • Development of mucus in or around the eyes.
  • Extreme sensitivity to light and redness of the eye.
  • Development of watery eyes, which is the human body’s answer to the dry eyes syndrome.
  • A person starting to develop the phenomenon, known as “Blurred vision”.

Conventional Cause of Dry Eyes

A variety of significant factors which can cause “Dry eyes”, have been mentioned below:-

  • Dry eyes are caused by the deficiency of an adequate amount of tears because, during the process of fasting, a person’s total intake of the liquid becomes either very less or close to a negligible amount. And this whole phenomenon of liquid deficiency causes the uneven generation of tears in the eyes, which directly results in the development of the dry eyes syndrome by a person.
  • If a person is in his successive years of age, then he is more than likely to develop dry eyes, because with the advancement of age, a person’s “Lacrimal glands or tear glands”, may start to malfunction, which further results in absence of a proper amount of liquid, in or around the eye.
  • Different kinds of perilous diseases can also cause the development of dry eyes. Some of these diseases are diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, scleroderma, thyroid disorders, and vitamin A deficiency.
  • In a peculiar number of cases, people who underwent one or another form of “Laser eye surgery”, have developed the symptoms of dry eye disease, but these symptoms have been found to be temporary in this particular case.
  • If a person, has suddenly started developing some kind of problem with the blinking of his eyes, then he can further develop the “dry eyes syndrome”

“Causal Relationship Between Fasting and Dry Eyes”

During the process of fasting, a person undergoes several kinds of experiences, which can lead to the origination of the “Dry eyes syndrome”. The causal relationship between fasting and dry eyes has it’s origin in certain kinds of factors, which have been mentioned below:

  • Due to falling level of vitamins and nutrients in a person’s diet which occurs due to fasting, a person’s health starts to become susceptible to different kinds of ailments, infections, and allergies, and the most severe effects are observed by the most delicate organ of the body, which is the “eye” of a person.
  • The numerous kinds of ailments caused by fasting are “deficiency in normal levels of hydration, dizziness, dry eye, mental fog, and lethargy”.
  • Fasting leads to depletion of stored energy reserves in the body, and for the process of metabolism to happen at its usual speed, it requires proper energy. But in the case of prolonged fasting, the energy levels or reserves of a person become severely low, which can lead to high severity problems with the functioning of metabolism.

Due to the lack of proper amount of fluids in the body, the eye glands receive very less amount of nutrients and as a result of it, the tear glands start to malfunction. As the tear glands are unable to generate enough amount of protein needed for the proper lubrication of the eyes, the eyes start to become dry, which further results in the development of “dry eye syndrome”.

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