I’m curious if I am at risk having floaters in the eye. Does stress cause floaters in the eyes?

Carmen

Chicago, IL

Hi Carmen! The fact is, anybody is at risk having a floater in the eye.  To tell you the truth, everybody at some point in their lives will develop floaters in the eye because as people age, the wearing and tearing on all parts of the body due to the aging process will take its toll including the most delicate parts of the eyes.  If you are near-sighted or had an eye cataract and had it operated on, then you have a much higher chance of contracting an eye floater or two, because these eye conditions may change or damage the blood vessels and the vitreous humor or the jelly like substance surrounding the eye.

Eye diseases such as chronic eye infections and eye inflammations may also cause floaters in the eye. Same as with playing active sports so in a way, depending on how you define stress in your question, it can also cause floaters in the eye. As a safety measure, you should wear safety goggles when participating in rigorous activities to prevent eye injury.

You don’t have to worry that much about floaters in the eye. For some, they are just a mere annoyance and in some cases, they even disappear over time. The human brain also plays a funny trick with floaters in the eye once you get used to them. What the brain does is it ignores the floaters and you won’t see nor notice them as much.

Floaters in the eye causes as you can see come from various health conditions.  Probably one of the best floaters in the eye treatment is an organic diet of fruits and vegetables.  To get enough of the needed organic fruits and vegetables to put you body in healing mode is to juice and blend all your product.   You should probably get your eyes checked by an ophthalmologist because various vascular problems such as diabetic retinopathy and retinal hemorrhages are the main causes of the appearance of multiple floaters in the eye and can cause more serious problems such as blindness and permanent vision loss if left untreated.  Detoxing your body by juicing and blending organinc fruits and vegetables can possible reverse this and any other problems your body may be having….giving it the tools it needs to heal its self is probably what we need most.

Again floaters in the eye are generally harmless, but if they are giving you problems go get those eye floaters checked out.

What are the most known causes of floaters in the eye?

Macy

Atlanta, GA

According to research and eye experts, there are many reasons why floaters in the eye occur especially among older people because wear and tear in the eyes happen as a person ages. Eye diseases which can lead to floaters in the eye can be prevented easily if you care for your eyes properly and visit your eye doctor regularly. For your knowledge, below is a list of the most known causes why floaters in the eye happen.

1. Benign vitreous hemorrhages – this happens when retinal blood vessels get damaged and bleed into the vitreous humor, a clear gel-like substance that fills the space between the lens and the retina in the eye.

2. Cysticercosis – an infection caused by a pork tapeworm in the body. The worm larvae can enter the blood stream in the eyes and cause blurry vision and can lead into floaters in the eye.

3. Intake of Fomivirsen sodium – a drug which is used for intravitreal injection for people with retinal infection.

4. Pars Planitis – A rare eye condition wherein the inflammation of the peripheral retina of the eye occurs.

5. Poserior Uveitis – any inflammation such as swelling and irritation of the uvea due to wear and tear or damage. This is the part of the eyeball that contains the retina.

6. Posterior vitreous detachment – the most common cause of floaters in the eye. While not a life threatening condition, it is said to be the cause of aging and may lead to more serious conditions such as retinal tearing and detachment.

7. Retinal tear or detachment – the more serious stage of posterior vitreous detachment. Retinal detachment happens when the retinal tissue from the inner eye wall separates. If left untreated, the loose retinal tissue may develop folds and completely detach to its proper position and can cause eye vision loss.

What are the connected risks when performing a surgery for floaters in the eye? My brother in law told me that I have it because I told him I am seeing weird objects which seem to block my eyesight when I’m staring at bright areas.

Martha

Juneau, Alaska

Before, the surgical procedure of Vitrectomy was believed to cure floaters in the eye. But after a few operations, it was found out that this surgical procedure has risky side effects such as cataracts, high intraocular pressure and eye bleeding.

The main purpose of Vitrectomy is to remove some or all of the vitreous humor from the eyes, not to cure floaters in the eye and it is done manually by making an opening in the outer layer of the eye and then making three small incisions through the inner wall of the eye. These incisions are for the fiber optic light, a tube to supply saline and a sucker cutter instrument. After all three are inserted in the eye the saline pipe is started, the light is turned on and the sucking and cutting of the vitreous humor is started. While this is a very crucial operation, the development of cataract after a few years is inevitable even if the procedure is done by the best eye doctors.

With the invention of lasers, some eye doctors believe that it can help remove floaters in the eye without doing damages and leaving side effects. This has been proven by a few doctors who further developed the laser technology by creating a non-thermal laser so that other elements in the eye won’t be disrupted. This laser-eye surgery procedure proved to be successful. There is still hope for you Martha. Soon, floaters in the eye can be cured easily and flawlessly.

Are Floaters in the eye curable? If not, how can we prevent it? Thanks

Carolyn

El Paso, TX

Back then, there are no cures for floaters in the eyes and it can only be prevented. But in today’s technology, floaters in the eye can be removed thru surgery. But surgery will only be performed by doctors if it’s a really serious case of eye floater. The reason behind this are the connected risks when performing an eye surgery.

The number one cause of floaters in the eye is aging. As we grow old, we can expect hemorrhage in a small level that will likely to happen in our eyes blood vessels due to wear and tear. After the hemorrhage happen, the blood clot will float freely in the vitreous humor in the eyes and those blood clots in very tiny particles are what we are seeing as floaters in the eye. These tiny particles will show in our eye’s line of sight but we will hardly see it. The only way to notice it is if we stop for a while and focus aimlessly on bright areas such as a white wall or the clear blue sky.

Besides from aging, other cause of floaters in the eye are deficiencies from zinc or copper. If floaters in the eye appear more visible, have them checked by an eye doctor. To prevent this, you may eat fruits which have a high Rutin content. Rutin is found in vitamin C and it helps cells to be stronger in order to avoid minor breakage of blood vessels. The highest concentration of Rutin is found on the white part of the skins of citrus fruits such as oranges and lemons.

Remember, while floaters in the eyes are curable thru surgery, It’s not yet fully accepted by the community perhaps due to the connected risks of doing it. For the mean time, prevention is your best option so start eating foods which are high in Rutin.  You may recomend this to others you know in addition if ofthers suffer from other eye issues like  color blindness, cataracts or eye glaucoma.  Eating Healthy and plenty of sleep is always the best healer for the body

Hi! I am nearsighted and I think I am suffering from what most people call “floaters in the eye”. Is this risky for my eye health?

Debra

Pittsburgh, PA

Just to be sure Debra, floaters in the eye are odd shapes that appear on a person’s vision pretty much like irregular shapes that flows across. They are sometimes silvery or dark in color and most of the times will show up when you are staring at bright areas or it specially appears when staring at skies which are bright blue or white. These are not rare cases of eye symptoms since almost everybody had experienced this, but others don’t take it seriously and are pretty much just like an annoyance.

To have a better understanding of what floaters in the eye are, I will tell you how or why does it occurs and for that reason, you can judge for yourself if floaters in the eye are risky or not.

From the lens to the back of our eye, there is vitreous humor which is basically like a gel like liquid that fills most of the eye. When we age, the gel starts to reduce or it turns into a liquid which causes it to separate from the retina. The tissues that are loose are the so called floaters in the eye that we see because it’s interfering with our line of sight. Floaters in the eye are normal since it’s a sign that we are aging.

In most cases, floaters in the eye are not harmful and most of them don’t appear long enough. But if it continues to show for more than an hour, it is recommended that you see the nearest eye doctor.

I have a history of retinal detachment so I know I am prone to having eye floaters. What can I do to prevent them?

Nancy
Las Vegas, NV

Hi Nancy, good question! Since you know that eye floaters don’t have a known cure, it is wise to prevent or reduce the risk that they will happen. These floaters are caused by micro retinal hemorrhage of the blood vessels behind the eye. After the bleeding stops, the blood clot detaches from the blood vessel and “float” within the vitreous humor of the eye. The gel-like clot is not really floating for it is inside the eye and can be quite a nuisance if it is ever stuck in your field of vision. Usually, the brain helps the eyes adapt from eye floaters and you would only see them if you concentrate see it. Luckily, there are ways to lessen the risk of having eye floaters and here’s a few:

1. If you have zinc and copper deficiency, you have a higher chance of getting eye floaters. Get a check up from a doctor once in a while and see if you have enough zinc and copper levels in the body.

2. Eat lots of foods which contain Rutin. Rutin is a molecule of Vitamin C and it helps to fortify cell to cell connections in the body. This in turn helps prevent the quick wear and tear of all blood vessels in the whole body. Although Rutin can be bought in pharmacies and health stores, it is best to get it the natural way. Eat citrus fruits, cook foods which require citrus fruit’s rind, or eat buckwheat. They are all high in Rutin and can help prevent eye floaters.

3. People with high blood pressure are more prone to eye floaters since they require medicines which have blood thinners such as aspirin and Tylenol. To prevent these, eat right and live right. Preventing the core problem is usually the best cure.

I was 45 when I started seeing these floaters in my left eye. What’s the deal with these things? My ophthalmologist told me that there’s nothing she can do. I’m getting desperate and I want them removed because they just seem to get worse! Can I have them removed through laser surgery?

Harvey
Miami, FL

I feel for you Harvey. According to statistics, eye floaters are a major nuisance to the general population. Especially common to older people who suffer from connective tissue disorders, eye floaters in general are not harmful for your health. It’s just pretty annoying to have them in the eyes because it is something we are not used to.

Eye floaters start at the back of the eyes upon the rupturing of blood vessels. As the blood clots, it goes straight to the vitreous humor of the eyes and just stays there. They get smaller as time goes by and before you know it, you will only see little specks of black, somewhat translucent or transparent marks in your field of vision. Now, I am not sure how you incurred eye floaters because their main causes vary but you could have prevented them by having the right knowledge and know how before they even occurred.

I know it could be irritating, even despairing for people to have eye floaters. But sadly, there are no known cures for eye floaters. Having a laser eye surgery can further damage the blood vessels in the eyes and can even cause the build-up of more eye floaters. I believe even your doctors will advise you the same thing. There are certain products which is said to help reduce the effects of having eye floaters but there is no conventional cure for it. As for those people who have a really severe case of eye floaters, vitrectomy is often suggested by doctors but it is quite pricey. Hope I helped you in any way.