12 Everyday Habits That Quietly Harm Women’s Eye Health
Nov 03, 2025
Women often juggle multiple responsibilities, such as work, home, and family, which can take a toll on their eye health. While age and genetics play a role, everyday habits can have a significantly greater impact. Here are 12 common habits that many women unknowingly practice, which can harm their eyes.
- Not Going for Regular Eye Check-up
Don’t assume that you don’t need a check-up just because your vision is fine. Your optometrist can detect an underlying eye health issue during an eye check-up and prevent it from getting severe. Women, especially those over 40, should schedule routine eye exams, as hormonal changes during menopause can affect tear production and lead to dryness.
- Excessive Screen Time
When you constantly stare at a screen, your eyes can become dry, causing itchiness and blurred vision. Try to limit your screen time on your laptop, phone, TV, or tablet, and take frequent breaks to reduce eye strain. Whether you are working long hours or scrolling through social media, excessive screen time can lead to digital eye strain, a condition many working women and mothers experience daily.
- Overuse of Eye Drops
Overusing eye drops irritates your eyes. Therefore, use them in moderation to alleviate dry eyes. And use the eye drops as prescribed by your eye doctor only. Don’t count on over-the-counter eye drops.
- Avoiding Sunglasses
Sunglasses are essential for eye protection from harmful UV rays emitted by the sun. Thus, don’t be lazy to put them on while stepping out in the daytime, even if the atmosphere is cloudy outside. Always use the best quality sunglasses.
- Rubbing Eyes
Rubbing your eyes is bad. But it is your first instinct when you feel itchiness in your eyes. Understand that you cause damage by putting pressure on them. Instead of rubbing, use a cold compress or rinse your eyes with water.
- Getting Dehydrated
When you don’t drink enough water and liquids, your eyes don’t produce enough tears. It hampers their nourishment and causes them to become dry. This leads to puffy eyes and blurred vision. Drink plenty of water and healthy fluids throughout the day.
- Not Removing Contacts Before Sleeping
Sleeping with your contacts can not only cause an eye infection. It can also inflict permanent damage. Forget the excuses you give to yourself, like being tired or it’s too late. Always remove your contacts with clean hands before going to sleep.
- Not Sleeping Enough
When you don’t get adequate sleep, your eyes get dry, tired, and itchy. You can also experience blurred vision. Thus, sleeping for a minimum of seven hours every night is non-negotiable to get enough rest for the eyes. Practicing meditation before bed can help calm your mind and improve sleep quality, which in turn benefits your eye health.
- Smoking
Smoking is recognized as a reason for cerebral lesions in the part of the brain that processes vision. Leaving smoking is not easy. But you must increase your efforts to leave it for the sake of your eyes and overall well-being.
- Unhealthy Diet
Unhealthy food is not typically something you consider when trying to determine what causes poor eyesight. But the lack of vitamins and nutrients in an unbalanced diet can even cost you vision loss. So, avoid junk food and maintain a healthy diet by incorporating greens, seafood, nuts, and fruits into your meals.
- Disregarding Your Overall Health
When you don’t eat nutritious food, exercise regularly, and get enough sleep, your overall body becomes unfit, including your eyes. However, a healthy lifestyle ensures healthy vision. It also protects you from ailments that threaten your eyesight, like diabetes and B.P.
- Misusing Eye Make-up
One of the most common bad eye habits is not removing your eye makeup before going to sleep. Eyeliner and mascara block your eye glands. It also generates bacteria near your eyes. Always remove eye makeup before going to sleep.
Bottom Line!
We are confident that you will recognize some of these bad eye habits and will do your best to avoid them.