Omega 3 Fish Oil Could Help Dry Eye Symptoms

A lot of women are entirely unprepared for the onset of menopause. And many will spend time researching what they can expect. Hot flashes and mood swings are the two most common symptoms. But about 61 percent of menopausal women also suffer from dry eye symptoms.
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A lot of women are entirely unprepared for the onset of menopause. And many will spend time researching what they can expect. According to WebMD, hot flashes and mood swings are the two most common symptoms that women can expect.

But, about 61 percent of menopausal women will suffer from the common dry eye symptoms while less than 16 percent of them will actually attribute it to menopause, according to the Huffington Post.

Dry eye, according to Women to Women, is rather common with hormonal imbalance. It's characterized by a condition where the tear ducts are unable to produce enough tears to proficiently lubricate the eye. This can result in itchy and scratchy eyes, with some women reporting effects like burning and stinging. When estrogen receptors on the cornea and on the meibomian gland are affected by hormonal imbalance, they can often stop producing the necessary lubrication.

Although the medical community as a whole agrees that more research needs to be conducted, dry eyes have been colloquially linked to imbalances in estrogen, progesterone or testosterone.

Many doctors are now looking to omega 3 fish oil as the quick, natural fix for dry eyes. The fatty acids in the fish oil are thought to reinforce the production of tears.

In an Eye World report, a recent study was noted that found that 70 percent of women who took omega 3 fish oil supplements reported to be asymptomatic within a short time period.

In a related study, the Ocular Nutrition Impact on Tear Film (ONIT), it was found that certain omega 3 fish oil supplements helped a vast majority of participants reduce or eliminate dry eye symptoms.

While there is no one cure-all for all menopausal symptoms, for women who are suffering from dry eye, it's comforting to know that something as simple as fish oil -- something you can buy at any drug or grocery store -- can serve as an adequate natural remedy.

Considering that most health ailments are typically not so inexpensively resolved, when it comes to dry eye symptoms, the cure could be fishy for a good reason.

Earlier on Huff/Post50:

THE POWER OF HONEY

Eat This, Not That: Foods To Avoid During Menopause

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