Are you giving your lashes the respect they deserve? Do you ever look in the mirror and wonder what happened to those lovely thick long eyelashes you used to have?
As a dry eye suffer you are not alone, the loss of, or the appearance of shorter or thinning of eyelashes is a common symptom of on-going dry eye and related conditions such as blepharitis. If this sounds like you then it might be time to give your lashes a bit of TLC. Those lashes have important work to do…
What are your lashes actually there for?
Our eyelashes are not just cosmetic; they help protect our eyes from dust and dirt particles which can led to irritation or infection. They also act as a warning system, a bit like a cat’s whiskers, to help prevent small foreign bodies entering and causing injury to the eye.
One ingenious study demonstrated that the optimum eye lash length (one third the width of your eye) diverts airflow from the surface of the eye, acting as a passive dust controlling system for the eyes and reducing evaporation by up to 50%,
Our lashes can also be an indicator of a person's health as various diseases can lead to short or long eyelashes. Our Lashes also play a role in our attractiveness, faces with the optimum lash length being perceived as more attractive than those with longer or shorter lashes. This might also explain why lash loss can impact your self-confidence and the way you feel about yourself. A study by eye experts Allergan showed that 75% of women, age 18-65 want longer, thicker and darker eyelashes so it is no surprise the interest in our eyelashes is on the increase.
Why do we lose our lashes?
Sadly, there is a tendency to see a fall in lash condition as we age.
But conditions such as dry eye and blepharitis certainly make things worse. Poor eye lash hygiene is often implicated, resulting in your oil glands at the base of the lashes becoming clogged with debris, bacteria and microscopic mites (Demodex). This causes chronic irritation, flaking, dry eyes, and lash loss.
Reactions to mascara, lash extension glues, or harsh makeup removers weaken and break lashes. These losses can be made worse by the use copious amounts of mascara, especially waterproof ones, lash extension glues, or harsh makeup removers which weaken and break lashes.
What to do to keep your lashes lush – the DO’s
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Do elevate your ocular hygiene routine, with thorough daily cleansing. You might want to consider daily use of a hypochlorous spray to help reduce microbial growth on the lashes.
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Do make sure you always remove make up at the end of the day. Keeping your ocular area clean allows natural oils to flow for better lash condition.
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Do look for dry eye friendly make-up, especially mascara, with so many products on the market it can be difficult to know which to choose, this is where you may want to ask the advice of your optician. The Dry Eye Zone experts have also sourced a range of OptoDermic™, these skin care and make-up products are created specifically to be gentle, non-toxic, and suitable for the sensitive eye area. When used as part of your daily routine they can help support a healthier ocular surface and reduce unnecessary inflammation.
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Do enhance your lashes with restorative serums – but choose your products with caution. Many contain harsh preservatives and prostaglandins, or synthetic prostaglandin analogs such as bimataprost, these are known to frequently cause or worsen dry eye disease. There are now products developed specifically with dry eye patients in mind to help restore eye lash condition.
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Do have patience, your eyelashes are like any hair, they take time to grow. Typically, the growth cycle is 4-6 weeks so whatever you do you will need to be patient.
What to do to keep your lashes lush – the DON’Ts
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Don’t rely on mascara. Instead concentrate on improving the condition of your eye lashes. Mascara has its place but be sure to find one that avoids those chemical nasties which can make dry eye worse.
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Don’t use eye lash extensions. If you have dry eye you need to think about your eyes first. In one published study the researchers concluded that eye lash extensions can lead to an imbalance in the ocular surface environment resulting in symptoms of irritation in over 80% of cases studied and loss of tear film quality. The most common side effect is a reaction to the glues used, some of these contain formaldehyde, which is known to be an irritant. This reaction leads to an inflammatory condition of the eyelid known as blepharitis. Other problems include damage or infection of the eyelid or cornea and permanent or temporary loss of eye lashes.
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Don’t subject your lashes (and eyes) to make-up and skin products which contain chemicals known to cause eye problems. It is not always easy to steer clear of chemical ingredients potentially toxic to dry eye sufferers or those with sensitive eyes, this includes: benzylalkonium chloride (BAK), formaldehyde releasing preservatives (quarternuim-15, DMDM hydantoin, imidazolidinyl urea, polyoxymethylene urea, sodium hydroxymethylglycinate, bromopol, glyoxal), parabens (butyl paraben methyl paraben propyl paraben), prostaglandins (bimataprost), synthetic prostaglandins (isopropyl cloprostenate). That is why the Dry Eye Zone experts have sourced a range of OptoDermic™ products you can use with confidence.
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Don’t keep eye make-up once opened longer than the recommended time, usually about 3 months. This is because there can be a proliferation of microorganisms which can cause irritation and infections. Your lashes make an inviting home for them.
Make sure you explore the many links in this blog to bring more depth to the subjects touched on here and to help give you a fuller knowledge of all things dry eye related.
Don’t forget to visit Dry Eye Zone and subscribe to the regular free information and research updates.
Sources:
Craig JP, Nichols KK, Akpek EK, Caffery B, Dua HS, Joo CK, Liu Z, Nelson JD, Nichols JJ, Tsubota K, Stapleton F. TFOS DEWS II Definition and Classification Report. Ocul Surf. 2017 Jul;15(3):276-283. doi: 10.1016/j.jtos.2017.05.008. Epub 2017 Jul 20. PMID: 28736335. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28736335/
Jones L, Downie LE, Korb D, Benitez-Del-Castillo JM, Dana R, Deng SX, Dong PN, Geerling G, Hida RY, Liu Y, Seo KY, Tauber J, Wakamatsu TH, Xu J, Wolffsohn JS, Craig JP. TFOS DEWS II Management and Therapy Report. Ocul Surf. 2017 Jul;15(3):575-628. doi: 10.1016/j.jtos.2017.05.006. Epub 2017 Jul 20. PMID: 28736343. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28736343/
Amador GJ, Mao W, DeMercurio P, Montero C, Clewis J, Alexeev A, Hu DL. Eyelashes divert airflow to protect the eye. J R Soc Interface. 2015 Apr 6;12(105):20141294. doi: 10.1098/rsif.2014.1294. PMID: 25716186; PMCID: PMC4387520.
Pazhoohi F, Kingstone A. Eyelash length attractiveness across ethnicities. Sci Rep. 2023 Sep 8;13(1):14849. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-41739-5. PMID: 37684317; PMCID: PMC10491613.
Grupcheva CN, Grupchev DI, Usheva N, Grupcheva LO. Beauty versus Health-How Eyelash Extensions May Affect Dry Eye Disease? J Clin Med. 2024 May 25;13(11):3101. doi: 10.3390/jcm13113101. PMID: 38892811; PMCID: PMC11173262.
Putnam CM. Diagnosis and management of blepharitis: an optometrist's perspective. Clin Optom (Auckl). 2016 Aug 8; 8:71-78. doi: 10.2147/OPTO.S84795. PMID: 30214351; PMCID: PMC6095371. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6095371/
Guo S, Kang J, Yan K, Li J, Wang R, Qin D, Wang Y, Liu Y, Guan W, Wu H, Hu J, Li W, Chen Y, Huang C, Liu Z. Prostaglandin F2α exacerbated dry eye by promoting lacrimal gland fibrosis progression through the activation of the RhoA/ROCKs signaling pathway. Ocul Surf. 2025 Oct;38:155-169. doi: 10.1016/j.jtos.2025.07.004. Epub 2025 Jul 18. PMID: 40685078.
