Natural Eye drops Work Best for Dry Eyes.

If you're like most Americans, when your eyes are dry, red, burning, or gritty, you reach for over-the-counter eye drops such as Visine or Murine to make them feel better. Unfortunately, it's likely that you're making the problem worse.

"So many people use these products for dry eyes-and they shouldn't," says Daniel John Dieterichs, an optometrist in Belen, New Mexico. These products "get the red out" by constricting the blood vessels in your eyes, which doesn't do anything to effectively moisten them.

And having dry eyes is a problem that you definitely want to solve. "Dry eyes are more than a nuisance," says Edward L. Paul Jr., O.D., Ph.D., an optometrist, holistic nutritionist, and director of Atlantic Eye Associates in Hampstead, North Carolina. "Chronically dry eyes can damage the tissue of the eye, possibly even scarring the cornea and leading to irreversible loss of vision."
The first step in restoring moisture to your eyes is to use eye drops, but they have to be the right kind of eyedrops-natural and preservative-free artificial tears.

ARTIFICIAL TEARS: Preserve Your Eyes without Preservatives
"The first line of defense in treating dry eyes is to replace the tears that are not there with artificial tears," Dr. Paul says. Of the many dozens of different types of artificial tears available, he recommends choosing a product without preservatives, which can irritate the eyes. Of those products, he prefers either Viva-Drops or Similasan, a homeopathic product.

Viva-Drops are made of sterile vitamin A oil and other antioxidants, which may actually improve the health of the tissue of the eye so tears remain in the eye longer. The homeopathic medication in Similasan is thought to moisten the eyes and stimulate tear production.

"In my experience, these products simply work better than any of the other artificial tears available," Dr. Paul says, Use them as needed; you can't "overdose" on artificial tears, he says. If you wear contact lenses, however, be sure to remove them before using these products.

EVENING PRIMROSE OIL: Increase Your Production of Tears
Nutritional support can also help relieve dry eyes, Evening primrose oil contains gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), a type of fatty acid that can increase tear production, says Dr, Paul. Take 1,500 milligrams a day. Or you can substitute the same amount of either black currant (seed) oil or borage oil, both of which are also rich in GLA.

VITAMINS C AND B6: Another Boost for Your Tears
You may want to get your GLA from a product that supplies vitamins C and B6, two other nutrients that can help increase tear production, says Marc Grossman, O.D., an optometrist, licensed acupuncturist, and codirector of the Integral Health Center in Rye and New Paltz, New York.
Look for a product with 1,500 milligrams of both GLA and vitamin C and 500 milligrams of vitamin B6' Use as necessary, following the directions on the label.

POTASSIUM: Eat a Banana Every Day
"Potassium is one of the most important minerals for relieving dry eye symptoms," says Dr. Grossman, noting that his patients with the problem are usually very low in potassium. He recommends eating a banana every day, which supplies approximately 400 milligrams of the nutrient.

FOOD: Don't Let These Hurt Your Eyes
Eating a lot of sugar or artificial sweeteners can worsen dry eyes, says Dr. Grossman. Avoid these foods as much as possible. You might also want to avoid dairy products, fried foods, and the hydrogenated oils in margarine and shortening. The fats in these products are thought to interfere with the metabolism of fatty acids like GLA and may be an indirect cause of dry eyes, he says.

TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE: An Herb for "Yin Deficiency"
Dr. Grossman recommends a Chinese herbal formula called Lycii Rehmannia for dry eyes. It helps treat what Traditional Chinese Medicine terms a yin-deficient syndrome, in which a part of the body is too dry or too hot. Follow the dosage recommendations on the label. HYDROTHERAPY: Soak Your Eyelids
It's very common for people with dry eyes to have blocked oil glands in their eyelids, a condition that makes tears less stable and more likely to evaporate quickly, says Dr. Dieterichs. To solve the problem, he recommends soaking and washing your eyelids twice a day. Here's how.

Each morning and evening, soak a washcloth in very warm water and place it over your lids for 3 to 4 minutes. Then, with your eyes closed, gently rub your lashes and eyelids in a left-to-right motion with the washcloth. "This technique helps a lot of people with dry eyes," Dr. Dieterichs says.

Dry Eyes After Sitting On A Computer.
Practice Blinking.
To stay lubricated, the eye needs to blink about 12 times a minute, or once every 5 seconds. People who use computers, staring intently at the screen, often blink as seldom as once a minute, says Daniel john Dieterichs, 0.0., an optometrist in Belen, New Mexico. Moreover, they may blink only halfway, so the lubrication that they do get is second-rate. The result is dry, red, burning eyes.

The way out of computer-caused dryness? Deliberate blinking. Practice blinking when you're at the computer, says Dr. Dieterichs. Each time, make sure that you close your eyes so that you can't see and keep them closed for just a second. If you consistently slow down your blinks, your subconscious mind will soon take over the task, and you'll be blinking the way you should.