Diet plays a major role in managing many eye conditions. For example, your doctor may recommend avoiding sweets if you have diabetic retinopathy, and if you wear contact lenses, it’s a good idea to stay hydrated to prevent dry eyes. Recently, some studies have indicated that caffeinated beverages may increase the pressure inside your eyes, which could be bad for glaucoma patients.
To set things straight, Opti-Care explains how caffeine affects glaucoma:
What Is Glaucoma?
When the volume of fluid inside your eye rises, so does the pressure inside your eye. If the pressure becomes high enough, it can damage your optic nerve, impairing the delivery of vision signals from your eyes to your brain. As a result, you will experience vision irregularities. This is a serious condition known as glaucoma.
The goal of glaucoma management is to stop the intraocular pressure from increasing further. Your optometrist may prescribe pressure-lowering eye drops or oral medication to help maintain your intraocular pressure. If these are not enough to manage the condition, we may recommend either laser or conventional surgery.
How Does Caffeine Affect Glaucoma?
Some studies have indicated that caffeine, a major component of coffee, causes intraocular pressure to rise. Caffeine has been linked to an increase in the production of aqueous humor, a type of eye fluid. When eye fluid volume rises, so does the pressure inside the eyes. This is why some experts recommend that glaucoma patients or those at risk of developing this condition should stop consuming caffeinated beverages.
However, other researchers say that there is no evidence that the increase in intraocular pressure caused by caffeine is clinically significant. Most eye doctors suggest that the best thing to do is to keep everything in moderation, including the amount of coffee you consume every day. In addition, you should have a comprehensive eye exam regularly so we can monitor your intraocular pressure levels.
For more information about glaucoma, call us at (410) 795-8670. We serve residents in Westminster and Marriottsville, MD, and nearby areas.