Welcome to the Ask a Nutritionist Podcast, brought to you by Nutritional Weight and Wellness.

We are thrilled to have you join us today as we discuss the connection between what you eat and how you feel,

and share practical real-life solutions for healthier living through balanced nutrition.

Now let's get started.

Good morning and welcome to Dishing Up Nutrition's new midweek segment called Ask a Nutritionist. My name is Brittany Vincent and I am a registered and licensed

dietitian. And on today's show brought to you by Nutritional Weight and Wellness, we will be answering a

nutrition question we've received from our Dishing Up Nutrition listeners.

And the question today is, do you have suggestions to help manage dry eye?

And I have a lot of suggestions for you, but I want to first talk a bit about dry eye.

So dry eye syndrome is a very common eye condition caused by insufficient

tear production. The tears are critical to keep the surface of our eyes properly lubricated,

keep it moist and free from dust and other particulates in the air. And the risk of developing dry eye syndrome

does increase with age and is more prevalent in women than men. So without that proper

tear production, you are at higher risk of getting scratched cornea and eye infections because again without that tear

production you're not washing away the germs and the particulars as much also dry eyes can affect

focus and cause just overall vision problems there are several different causes of dry eye syndrome. These are just a

handful. It can be a side effect of an over-the-counter or prescription medication. So I would make

sure to check all of the medications that you're on to see if that might be a side effect. Medical conditions like

Leferitis, Shogren's disease can cause dry eyes, vitamin A deficiency, diabetes. This is a big one

according to the American Diabetes Association. 54% of individuals with diabetes have dry eye

syndrome. It's a lot. It's because high blood sugars can cause nerve damage, which can reduce

tear production. Also, the inflammation that's caused by the high blood sugars makes it harder for the glands in your eyes to make the tears.

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