Can Smoking Affect The Eyes?

Smoking can affect the eyes and practically the entire body. In the case of the eyes, the damage caused by tobacco originates from episodes of conjunctivitis, to total blindness. This is all the more reason to quit a habit that has become the number one preventable cause of death in the world.

The harmful effects of tobacco on the respiratory and cardiovascular systems are well known. In contrast, not many people are aware that smoking can affect the eyes, even permanently. It is estimated that only one in five smokers is aware of this risk.

Smokers are believed to be twice as likely to lose vision as non-smokers. The damage comes mainly from tobacco smoke, since it contains toxins that initially irritate, but later damage the eyeball. Smoking can even affect the eyes of passive smokers.

How can smoking affect the eyes?

Smoking can affect the eyes in different ways and to different degrees. This depends on many factors, including the amount of tobacco consumed daily, how long this habit has been maintained, genetics, general health, etc.

The main conditions caused by cigarettes, cigars, and pipes are as follows:

• Of dry eye syndrome. It presents as itching and roughness when the eyelid is moved over the eye. It is caused by an imbalance of natural tears. The eye becomes red and vision is blurred; In the long term, it can scar the cornea.
• Cataracts. Cataracts are a clouding of the lens that clouds vision. This problem can only be corrected with surgery.
• Diabetic retinopathy. In a person with diabetes, tobacco can lead to damage to the blood vessels in the retina. This causes blurry and unfocused vision, which over time can lead to blindness.

• Macular degeneration. Smokers are three times more likely to develop this condition. This reduces central vision and the ability to capture fine details. It is treatable, but there is no cure.
• Optic neuropathy. It consists of a sudden loss of vision due to the blockage of the blood supply to the eye. It can lead to permanent blindness.
• Uveitis. This disease affects the iris and the ciliary body and is characterized by causing redness in the eyes, vision problems and pain.

Symptoms of the condition

Eye conditions often go unnoticed by smokers, in part because some of these problems do not cause symptoms in the early stages of the disease. The most convenient thing is to have a regular review with the ophthalmologist.

In particular, you should see a doctor when some of these symptoms occur :

• Blurry vision.
• Blurred spot in central vision.
• Need for more light to read.
• Vision of undulations in straight lines.

• Problem recognizing faces.
• Itching and habitual redness in the eyes.
• Difficulty recognizing details in images.

Smoking during pregnancy

Smoking while pregnant poses a high risk to the baby. In addition to the known dangers, smoking can also affect your child’s eyes in a number of ways.

Tobacco increases the risk of preterm birth. This, in turn, can lead to a serious eye problem called ‘retinopathy of prematurity’, causing total blindness in some cases.

Likewise, mothers who smoke during pregnancy are five times more likely to have children with bacterial meningitis during childhood. This disease leads to serious vision problems and eye infections.

Keep in mind that these dangers not only threaten mothers who smoke directly, but also those who are in environments that expose them to smoke. You should not smoke in the environment of a pregnant woman.

If smoking can affect the eyes, what can we do?

The healthiest measure is to quit smoking. As difficult as it may seem, thousands of people in the world achieve it every day. The most appropriate thing is to go to the doctor and ask for help to quit the habit. There are medications and practices, such as meditation, that contribute significantly to achieving this goal.

While it is possible to give up tobacco, it is necessary to visit the ophthalmologist regularly. With this we can prevent any eye disease that arises as a result of smoking. Likewise, it is convenient to exercise and maintain a diet rich in green leafy vegetables and fish.