Does your eye twitch involuntarily? If so, it is completely painless and almost always harmless, usually going away on its own. It’s not uncommon for some people to have eye spasms throughout the day, which can be chalked up as nothing more than a temporary nuisance. While eye twitches are generally not a serious problem, many people don’t think about investigating the cause. But if you’ve wondered why your eye may twitch every so often, it could be due to one of the following:
- Caffeine. Too much caffeine is a prime trigger for eye twitching. Likewise, drinking too much alcohol can trigger twitches. Look at cutting back on caffeine and alcohol if your eye is twitching often.
- Stress. Sometimes when you experience stress it can be related to vision problems like eye strain, a condition where your eyes may be working too hard. This can trigger a twitch. It may be time to visit your doctor for an eye exam; you may need to get or renew an eyeglass prescription.
- Computer screen. Overusing computers is a very common cause of eye stress. If you profession calls for you to be on the computer for great lengths of time, talk to your doctor about the possibility of getting special computer eyeglasses.
- Dry eyes. Similar to the above, the overuse of computers can trigger dry eyes which may prompt twitching. Dry eyes are also caused by medications like antihistamines or antidepressants. It may be a good idea to schedule a dry eye exam with your doctor, as there are many treatments available to treat dry eyes.
- Allergies. If you have allergies, you likely experience itchy and watery eyes, an irritating symptom that may prompt you to rub your eyes often. Persistent eye rubbing releases histamine into the eye, which has been found to correlate with eye twitching.
In more uncommon cases, eye twitches may go on for weeks or even months and may lead to a chronic condition. When eye twitching is serious, it can cause vision impairment. If you begin to experience severe eye twitching, please call us today to schedule an appointment with one of our doctors.