Blinking is something we constantly do unconsciously, and it is difficult to keep our eyes open for a long time without doing so, as it leads to unbearable dryness. Continue reading to find out why!
Blinking is a very important function that helps rid of dust particles that land in our eyes, and keeps it from being dry by lubricating it. You may notice that if you try to keep them open for too long, your eyes begin to water and feel like they're burning up.
On average, people blink about every 10 seconds. This sounds like a lot, doesn't it? However, it doesn't affect our vision and sight, because blinks normally last only for one tenth of a second, and our brain has the ability to ignore them. Blinking also pauses some brain function, which is why we don't notice the temporary lapse of vision.
Blinking restores your tear film, which is the moist layer that covers your eyes, made of water, mucus, oil, and nutrients and amino acids that sustain the cells in the eye's cornea. The tear film is actually very essential to have and maintain, because it allows for light to focus as it meets the eye, transfers oxygen into the eye's cornea, keeps from infection due to the antibacterial enzymes in the eye, and allows white blood cells to travel when an injury occurs.
In addition, as you blink, your eyelids have multiple glands that contain the components of tears, and secrete them each time. The eyelids also push debris in the direction of your eyes' tear ducts, which gets cleaned out by tears. Our eyelids also serve to protect our eyes from extremely bright lights that can cause vision damage.
Furthermore, science suggests that blinking also allows your brain to take a short break from visual stimuli. In addition, blinking is considered a state where the mind is taking a wakeful rest, and can boost mental activity. Altogether, this helps refresh the brain and allows us to be more focused afterward.
As you can see, blinking not only keeps our eyes working and healthy, but it also improves brain function over long periods of time. Therefore, without the function of blinking, we might have less productive brain activity and shorter attention spans, and it keeps us wide awake throughout our long days.
Thank you for reading! Stay safe!
References:
Bedinghaus, Troy. “Why Blinking Our Eyes Is Necessary.” Verywell Health, Verywell Health, 28 Apr. 2020, www.verywellhealth.com/why-do-we-blink-our-eyes-3879210.
Mauk, Ben. “Why Do We Blink?” Livescience.Com, 24 Oct. 2012, www.livescience.com/32189-why-do-we-blink.html.
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