Dry eyes

noclady1995

Hi everyone! Today is officially one week since I started eating vlchf! I'm really happy with how I'm feeling and the food I'm able to eat! However, the past couple of days, I've noticed my eyes are red and dry. Is this an indication of something that I should be aware of? I was planning to run out during lunch and grab some eye drops. I never have problems with my eyes, and I don't wear contacts, so I wasn't sure if it was something I should just expect. Thanks in advance!

JodehFoster

are you drinking your water? sounds like dehydration.

noclady1995

I've been trying....I drink 4 of those 16.9 oz bottles during the day, and probably another 24 oz. at night after I get home.

Unknown

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baconslave

tsazani wrote: »

I agree. Besides drinking lots of water, try to get some extra salt into your diet. I drink 2-3 cups of chicken broth per day and liberally use the salt shaker. My former enemies (fat, salt, and cholesterol) are now my best friends. How crazy is that?

JodehFoster wrote: »

are you drinking your water? sounds like dehydration.

Agree.

Should that fail you...
It's not unheard of for those with a very low-carb diet, though it may be related to something else entirely in your case. Eye-strain, drop in humidity or allergies.

I'm not sure what your carb level is. Mine is 20g. When I reach a certain point I go through a period of dry eyes for a few days. I have no trouble with dry eyes any other time. It seems like every time I hit a new level of adaptation this happens. I drink plenty and my electrolytes are fine. It's a thing for some people. Go ahead and do the drops. Stay in a steamy room for a few minutes or boil some water, drape a towel over your head to capture the steam and let it moisturise your eyes. Or place a warm cloth over the eyes for a little bit. Mine gets so bad that I've torn the lining of my eyeball a few times. It passes in a couple days for me. If you are on-point with electrolytes and water you should be fine. But some people report relief by upping their carbs a little bit, like 5 or 10g. That, IMO, is a last resort and only for those who's health doesn't medically require ketosis.

noclady1995

Thanks everyone. I'll up my water intake and my salt. I know for sure I haven't gotten nearly enough sodium the last couple of days. Yes, I do have allergies and the air has gotten a bit drier, so those could entirely be the culprits. I try to keep my carbs at about 20 g, as well.

JodehFoster

we've had the heat on in the house more often in the past couple weeks & my skin is noticeably drier as well

wabmester

I don't have dry eyes, but I figured I'd mention one other factor: mucus.

I seem to make less of the stuff. It could be simple dehydration, but I don't think so.

So if water and sodium don't help, let us know. Mucus is made of glucose and proteins, so it's possible that diet might be a factor in production.

KarlaYP

Need for water was my guess too. Your body is flushing so many ketones right now that replacement of fluids, and sodium (sodium follows water out of the body) is vital. From now on you'll recognise those dry eyes as a sign of thirst (if the water helps it that it), hehe. Your new normal.

KnitOrMiss

wabmester wrote: »

I don't have dry eyes, but I figured I'd mention one other factor: mucus.

I seem to make less of the stuff. It could be simple dehydration, but I don't think so.

So if water and sodium don't help, let us know. Mucus is made of glucose and proteins, so it's possible that diet might be a factor in production.

I'm not one of the lucky group that gets reduced mucus production from a low carb diet. I've seen this documented many times. But my mucus may be somewhat triggered by my continued dairy consumption... I could deal with fewer allergies, but not with dry eyes, dry skin, and dry....feminine areas, etc. Oh, the trade-offs.

esaucier17

JodehFoster wrote: »

we've had the heat on in the house more often in the past couple weeks & my skin is noticeably drier as well

Sorry totally off topic but I live in Florida and it is still 80 degrees here! So hearing you say you have your heater on made me giggle

JodehFoster

esaucier17 wrote: »

JodehFoster wrote: »

we've had the heat on in the house more often in the past couple weeks & my skin is noticeably drier as well

Sorry totally off topic but I live in Florida and it is still 80 degrees here! So hearing you say you have your heater on made me giggle

we had snow here in NE Ohio a week or two ago...keep giggling!

wabmester

KnitOrMiss wrote: »

wabmester wrote: »

I don't have dry eyes, but I figured I'd mention one other factor: mucus.

I seem to make less of the stuff. It could be simple dehydration, but I don't think so.

So if water and sodium don't help, let us know. Mucus is made of glucose and proteins, so it's possible that diet might be a factor in production.

I'm not one of the lucky group that gets reduced mucus production from a low carb diet. I've seen this documented many times.

It is kind of interesting, and I'm really not sure why it happens. For me, it means no more rheum when I wake up, among other things.

It might be due to carb restriction or the restriction of certain amino acids in the diet. But it could just be a sign of less systemic irritation/inflammation as well.

I'm happy about it, but I worry that it could be indicative of less intestinal mucus, and that could be a Bad Thing.

esaucier17

JodehFoster wrote: »

esaucier17 wrote: »

JodehFoster wrote: »

we've had the heat on in the house more often in the past couple weeks & my skin is noticeably drier as well

Sorry totally off topic but I live in Florida and it is still 80 degrees here! So hearing you say you have your heater on made me giggle

we had snow here in NE Ohio a week or two ago...keep giggling!

I hate this hot weather....trust me I wish I was using my heater, lol

I have family in Ohio...I saw they were picking pumpkins in the snow while we were sweating our booties off!

V_Keto_V

Omega-3 FAs actually do have efficacy for helping with Xerophthalmia according to Pharmacists Letter Natural Database.
Artificial tears is a go-to product as well; unit dose version is least irritating due to lack of benzalkonium chloride (preservative) but has higher cost due to excess packaging required...alternatively artificial tears with CMC as a preservative is a compromise. Just be sure to admin properly with pressure on nasolacrimal duct to prevent systemic absorption & passage through the nose & throat (yes, you can taste it if done improperly).

GaleHawkins

@noclady1995 we can have many different issues since we are all different. The first 90 days I had a lot of weird stuff happen but nothing ready bad as for as needing medical attention or even close to it. I had to stop wearing my fitbit watch because the band started driving me crazy. When I looked with strong glasses it was an old scar that had become sensitive. Some call it a retracement of symptoms others call it a healing crisis so just be aware there is such a thing as retracement of past symptoms. Many stop their healing for life because they panic when retracement occurs.

drjuliewilson.com/what-is-a-healing-crisis/

drjuliewilson.com/if-im-healthier-why-are-my-symptoms-worse/

Best of success.