Sore Eyes

[realmaverick]

I've had this issue for as long as i can remember. My eyes are sore and red several times a day, often for most of the day. My eyes don't get puffy, just red and sore inside.

They're extremely sensitive to smokey rooms, air con and fluorescent lights. Flou lights are horrific intact. They make my eyes red raw within minutes.

My optician says my eyes are healthy and cannot see any reason why my eyes are always so sore. He even tried me on prescription strength tear drops but they haven't helped at all.

Being gluten free for a couple of weeks hasn't really helped. I'm not expecting my farigue to lift any time soon, but if it were gluten causing the inflammation in my eyes, wouldnt eliminating gluten have a reasonably fast effect?

Perhaps its another food allergy? Is there a particular food allergy that would more likely cause inflammation in my eyes?

I think I'm going to have to try an elimination diet. But damn, this is depressing. I feel quite angry at my body right now, as strange as it sounds. I just want to scream at my unconscious mind "stop over reacting you piece of crap!".

[bluebonnet]

i have dealt with dry achy eyes for several years now. i too was hoping for relief after being gluten free by now. i notice if i don't get enough sleep (most nights) that it tends to aggrevate the soreness even more. they just h.u.r.t.

some things that my eye doc told me to do often:

take fish oil, eat fish, tomato based foods and green leafy ... all great for eye health and stave off inflammation.

if you are on the computer or do a lot of close range activity make sure to step away and look out into the horizon as far as you can to keep eye muscles strong and give your eyes a rest.

eye drops to moisturize (i have to use them daily and this for me doesn't help much most days).

you mentioned an elimination diet which may help ... i'm thinking of cutting out sugar. i know sugar wreaks havoc so i am hoping by eliminating it i will notice improvement. i hope you find relief soon.

[sa1937]

I've had a lot of problems with my eyes, too. They were really irritated, dry and uncomfortable last winter. Right now I still have some discomfort but not nearly as bad. I also use two different eye drops for pressure, as well as Restasis morning and night and also OTC GenTeal Eye Gel before I go to bed. For awhile I was on an antibiotic eye ointment, which really seemed to do nothing. I'm off that now. I do use moisturizing eye drops as needed during the day. I have a follow-up appt. in early Nov. so will see how they're doing then.

Since I'm still pretty new to celiac (6 months), I don't know if my eyes will improve or not. I did, however, buy a couple of humidifiers to try to keep the moisture levels in the house up once the weather turns cold and the heat is on.

[bridgetm]

Same problem here. I used a lot of eye drops through high school. For a while I was pulling out the bottle between every class, at least 5 times a day; I finally realized they weren't doing much good so I quit and saved a little money.

It often feels like I have something in my eye when there is nothing there. I'll run to a mirror to remove what feels like an eyelash grating over my eyeball and spend so much time rubbing at it that it, trying to get an invisible irritant out, that it just gets worse.

It's something I've just learned to deal with and I haven't noticed any change in the dryness since going gluten-free although I do find it easier to focus my eyes. I used to have trouble transitioning from looking at my notes right in front of me to looking up at the board, but now it is usually a pretty seamless transition.

If I'm doing a lot of reading I'll use the gel-like eyedrops instead of the saline ones. I can't remember which brand it is (ran out a while back and haven't bothered to pick some up) but there's one that acts more like a sealant than like tears. It has a more gel-like consistency than your typical drops. Sometimes in the winter I'll use the saline drops, wait a few minutes and then add a drop of the gel.

[cassP]

ive had puffy/red/sensitive eyes for the last 5 years.. and im suspecting a hypothyroid. gluten intolerance and thyroid issues often go hand in hand.. and recently a friend sent me a list of hypothyroid symptoms- and puffy eyes & rhinitis were on there.

of course allergies, and gluten & dairy can be the main causes... but mine have not gotten better.. plus my tsh was already on the border 4 years ago

good luck

[realmaverick]

Thanks for all the replies. It drives me mad. I mean, your eyes are not only visible, but such an important part of your face, when they're red, I feel quite embarrassed if I'm around new people.

It often feels like I have something in my eye when there is nothing there. I'll run to a mirror to remove what feels like an eyelash grating over my eyeball and spend so much time rubbing at it that it, trying to get an invisible irritant out, that it just gets worse.

My god, that happens to me several times a day. Sometimes there maybe an eyelash in there. But often I cannot see anything, but something that feels like an eyelash irritates the hell out of me. I find it hard not to focus on it.

Same problem here. I used a lot of eye drops through high school. For a while I was pulling out the bottle between every class, at least 5 times a day; I finally realized they weren't doing much good so I quit and saved a little money.

Moisturising eye drops don't help me either. Anti inflammatory eyedrops helped, that I had after laser eye surgery. But apparently I couldn't use those full time. Typical! I also find that brightening eye drops help with the redness and help my eyes feel cool. But from what I've read, they're not good for your eyes either.

I am determined to figure out what's wrong. I'll post updates if I have any discoveries with my own trial and error / diet.

[rockectman]

Thanks for all the replies. It drives me mad. I mean, your eyes are not only visible, but such an important part of your face, when they're red, I feel quite embarrassed if I'm around new people.

My god, that happens to me several times a day. Sometimes there maybe an eyelash in there. But often I cannot see anything, but something that feels like an eyelash irritates the hell out of me. I find it hard not to focus on it.

Moisturising eye drops don't help me either. Anti inflammatory eyedrops helped, that I had after laser eye surgery. But apparently I couldn't use those full time. Typical! I also find that brightening eye drops help with the redness and help my eyes feel cool. But from what I've read, they're not good for your eyes either.

I am determined to figure out what's wrong. I'll post updates if I have any discoveries with my own trial and error / diet.

I am a celiac since 2006 and have cheated on my diet up until about a week ago. My eyes are always red and I think the eyes

are a signal that your body is under attack, in this case, gluten. I am getting very strict with my diet now as Lymphoma and intestinal cancer is a real possibility if I continue cheating, so hopefully my eyes will return to normal after my body

stops fighting itself due to gluten invasion.