About these miracle solutions?

[Krisse]

Hi,

It's been about 3 years that I've been on this forum, not coincidentally now I'm having a very bad period of blepharitis. (Re-reading the post that I made here back then, makes me realise that I've had a lot worse in the past ). I definitely got blepharitis (my red inflamed eyelids agree with me) and possible MGD (need to resee an eye doctor for that)

A lot of new stuff has been posted on this forum since then, some very interesting. The past few years I have not altered my routine, because the result was 'ok to live with most of the time', but with the recent downs I've been getting more and more worried of how healthy these products al are (all the chemical crap that I put in/around my eyes on a daily basis). I would like to try to get more natural and some of the topics here recommend various solutions. I'm very, very curious how many people respond positive to these solutions:

- The lemon/ green tea miracle solution
- the style n'clean pen (or the variation: blephex)
- witch hazel oil
- lefarite (some Spanish lubricant to put on the eyelids against inflammation)
- plugs in tear channels (not new, but I never tried it).

I'll definitely try some of them, if not all (depending if I can get them in Belgium), but I'm curious to hear your responses.

Greetings,
Kristof

[farmgirl]

Quadra plugs were a game changer for me, don't be afraid to try them, also moisture chamber glasses both 7eye and Wiley X

[regularjoe]

- The lemon/ green tea miracle solution

I am interested in this one... does anyone besides Hokucat swear by this? How long for it to take effect?

[Hokucat]

Joe/Krisse - I wish there was a magic bullet, but different things work for different people, since we all have varied underlying causes of dry eyes, and are in different stages - no gland blockage but poor oil quality, blockage from thick oil or scar tissue, etc. If all your glands are blocked like mine were, likely no diet changes or treatments will have much impact until you clear the blockage.

I'm one who believes in healing from the inside out with diet, where possible. After unblocking my glands with probing, for me fresh lemon juice in green tea was key in changing my oils from thick to flowing, so my glands did not get blocked again. I noticed it was working after drinking it 2x daily for about a week. I may never know for sure why it helped, but am thinking the antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory properties was what my immune system needed to function correctly and killed off the bad bacteria. It makes sense since likely the main cause of my MGD and blepharitis is autoimmune disease.

I know of two people for who the lemon tea also worked...one also has autoimmune disease. I've also read past posts in this forum where green tea has helped some people. For you it might be something else that helps. Identifying the probable cause of your condition may help better determine what diet changes or treatments to consider.

It took awhile to find what all worked for me. I kept a daily log of everything I ate and drank, meds taken, daily eye regimen (lid scrub type, compresses and so on), hours of sleep and exercise, how my eyes felt that day, etc. to methodically figure out what made my eyes feel better and worse. In general, I eat a very healthy diet. Here's a recent post where I identified the key factors that helped me recover and manage my condition:

http://www.dryeyezone.com/talk/forum...ccumulate-info

Krisse - You might consider looking into sclerals to help manage your symptoms. These have been used increasingly for dry eyes, for those able to wear them. Here's a good description of sclerals in general for Boston PROSE lenses, however there are several brands of sclerals:

http://www.bostonsight.org/PROSE/PRO...y-Eye-Syndrome

I wear PROSE lenses 12+ hours a day to help manage remaining dryness I have due to some atrophied glands. I have been very happy with my doctor and the lenses. Sclerals do not resolve the MGD, but can help the symptoms and daily functioning.

[Krisse]

Ok so, a month later now and...

The green tea + citrus actually seems to work.... It's the only change I've made in my routine in the last years and my eyes have never been better (in the last 10 years at least). More then that: I went to see an eye doctor last week and she said the most remarkable thing: "I don't see any blepharitis, nor crusts on your eyelids". Now you have to know I stopped cleaning my eyelids 2 weeks before that. She didn't even detect 'dry spots' on the inner side of my eyelids, while they should be there with my condition. I almost cried of joy.

I also asked about the plugs, but she refused to give them to me, because my eyes were not dry enough. She seemed quit interested and also told me back in the day people used to put eye pads soaked in Camille tea on their eyes to ease them.

I'm not 100% sure it's the tea, since its only been a month, but if this works, it works better then everything else combined. These days I even let my emergency eyedrops at home. One more thing: last weekend + this week I didn't drink the tea for about 5 days in a row and my eyes got noticeably annoyed again.... (so I'm writing this with a big cup of tea next to me)

So: defs worth a try: it's cheap, healthy and natural.

Good luck! Kristof

[Hokucat]

Hi Kristof. That's great the green tea/lemon/citrus worked for you, I am so happy for you! That makes three people now that I know of, other than myself, for which this has had a material impact.

Yes, not drinking it for a week and noticing the dryness coming back is the ultimate personal test. And your doctor seeing physical improvement is great validation. I've been drinking it for a year and a half now, and when I compare back every 3 months, I notice my eyes have continued to get better, and so do my doctors. They are all amazed, and one of my doctors said she is going to mention it to her other MGD patients as something possible to try.

I hope your eyes continue to improve! I am having my lemon/tea, like usual, right now :-)

[allskin]

Wow, great discovery. I'll try, thanks!

[agrlds]

farmgirl, Krisse andHokucat,

Do you know if it works for aqueous problem aswell? Based on your experiences, i understand it addresses more problems like Blepharitis and MGD.

I think i will give a try anyway but i would like to hear your opinion first.

And - how are you guys doing, still improving?

Thanks in advance!

Andre

[Hokucat]

Hi Andre. I don't know if the green tea/lemon/citrus works for aqueous problems, but it won't hurt to try it. Studies show it's good for the overall immune system and fighting diseases (see below). Based on myself and the three others I know it worked for, we all have MGD and/or blepharitis as a component of our dry eyes. Two of us have or likely have dry eyes from autoimmune disease...it would be interesting to hear what Kristof's probable underlying cause is. But another example of how I could tell it was helping more than my MGD - I had a wart on my knee for at least a year that had continued to grow, but after I started the lemon/tea, it started shrinking and went away completely! So definitely worth a try.

I stumbled upon the green tea/lemon combo when trying changes to my diet a year and a half ago, desparate to resolve several years suffering from severe dry eye, when none of numerous treatments worked. After it started helping my eyes, I tried to find out if it had helped others In the same way, but couldn't find anything online, and none of my eye doctors ever heard of it. However, I subsequently found these Purdue studies that supported drinking green tea with lemon, other citrus fruits, or a vitamin C supplement helps boost the immune system, and fights cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and other diseases, AND also this NIH study that the polyphenols in green tea may help ocular inflammatory conditions:

http://www.purdue.edu/uns/x/2007b/07...rruzziTea.html

https://news.uns.purdue.edu/x/2009b/...iGreentea.html

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/21364905/#fft

I've shared these studies in various posts, but will be adding it to my original post from last year on green tea/lemon shortly, so that it's all in the same thread:

http://www.dryeyezone.com/talk/forum...evere-dry-eyes

The dryness has continued to improve this past year and a half, since starting the green tea/lemon. It truly has been nature's miracle for me. I always thought food was nature's medicine, but nothing with such an impact like this. I am hopeful there will be others it will help too.

[PhoenixEyes]

Regarding lemon green tea etc. just want to offer a tip for people like me who aren't fond of hot drinks. You can actually "cold brew" the tea. Just place the tea bag or tea leaves/lemon in a cup or pitcher of water and leave in the fridge for 6 - 12 hours or overnight. Studies have shown the antioxidant levels are equal if not better, so nothing to lose.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4648929/

I got this bottle to filter any tea leaves etc. while drinking.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01KICIJ98
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01KG4D4V6

Doubt it'll be a cure for me due to the severity of my case but certainly doesn't hurt and been thinking to try drinking green tea in the past for other health benefits anyway.

[agrlds]

Hi Hokucat,

Thank you so much for staying around and sharing your wisdom when you are feeling better and could not care about us.

Just curious...when you say "(...)likely have dry eyes from autoimmune disease." did you do all the tests to sort it out? Like lip biopsy?

Well... In my case, i did schirmer and it was like 3 mm. Tbut not so bad, doctor said. I just wonder... People with EDE score high on schirmer? When you score low on schirmer it means you have ATD straight away?

Phoenixeyes,

Thanks for the tips! Cold should be better... With summer coming, i will try that way.

[MGD1701]

Acutally 'cold' green tea is a good idea because too hot water will damage its healthy stuff.
I added some goji berries (which is good against inflammation too) and it tastes ok.

[PhoenixEyes]

Came across this post on the Facebook group and thought I'd copy it here so Hokucat and others can see it in case they don't follow there:

Hi, something I want to share: about a month ago I read on the dryeyezone forum about the 'green tea+citrus' therapy. A guy said it helped him to drink two big cups of green tea (with citrus) every day to control his blepharitis. At the end of May my eyes were very bad. A month later I can say it helped me to control my MGD/blepharitis. Last week I went to see an eye doctor and 8 years after my bleph diagnose she told me I didn't have the signs anymore.... It's cheap and natural and healthy any way, so definately worth the try Right now I'm drinking the Lipton green tea +citrus, but any tea assortiment has it, I also have bio ones.

Gr, Kristof

[Hokucat]

PhoenixEyes,

I like the idea of brewing cold green tea/lemon too. Thanks for mentioning it...will be good to mix things up a bit! I agree, MGD1701, too hot can lose potency. I use warmer water, use a spoon to push the teabag against the cup ~100 times to get it to a strong dark green quickly, then immediately squeeze in the lemon juice and drink it to limit loss of potency. Also, the longer it is exposed to air, whether hot, warm, or cold, this will also reduce effectiveness.

Also thanks for sharing that Facebook post, PhoenixEyes. Looks like it was posted by Krisse (aka Kristof) who started this thread. Glad he is excited about it helping him and wanting to share it to help others. But Kristof, FYI, I'm a girl, not a guy! :-)

Andre,

You're very welcome. Am glad to help where I can. After going through so many debilitating years with severe dry eyes, I promised myself if I ever got better, I would try to assist others navigating through it and the vast array of treatments. It's so easy to lose hope when you're in pain, trying treatment after treatment, and nothing works.

I continue to have extensive autoimmune blood tests regularly, EXCEPT never had lip biopsy. My rheumatologist said this test causes some patients to have a permanent numb spot on their lip, and unless I insisted on getting the biopsy, he was 99% sure I had Sjogren's Syndrome from all the other symptoms I had when my eyes were at their worst, plus it's likely hereditary since close relatives in my family have tested positive for Sjogren's and other "sister" autoimmune diseases. I agree with him. At the point my eyes reached zero tear film several years ago, it was obvious my immune system was also attacking other moisture glands in my body - my mouth got extremely dry, lips chapped and cracked, all skin on body, limbs, and face got dry and scaley (I normally had oily skin on my face), and muscles and joints got numb and sore. I was quite a mess, but have been able to overcome all of it with diet.

Regarding Schirmer scores, I think low scores are a good indication of Aqueous Tear Deficiency, but not necessarily definitive. And those with Evaporative Dry Eye (typically due to MGD like me) do not always have high Schirmer scores. At my worst I registered zero in both eyes...the technician thought they made a mistake somehow and took it again, with the same results. Those were certainly rough times!