See hidden signs of disease from the eye mucus when you wake up

Many people often find eye mucus after getting up in the morning. Some middle-aged and elderly people will have eye mucus in the corners of their eyes even if they are not waking up. Generally speaking, eye mucus is related to less eyelid movement and reduced tear secretion during sleep. Sometimes, eye mucus is a sign of illness, often a manifestation of eye disease.

Healthy people sometimes find a small amount of secretion in the corners of their eyes when they wash their faces in the morning.

This is related to the fact that the eyelids move less during sleep, resulting in reduced tear secretion and slow discharge. The eye secretions of healthy people mainly come from the lacrimal glands, meibomian glands, mucus secreted by ocular surface cells and desquamated ocular surface epithelial cells. Most of them are transparent or pale white and are usually not easy to detect. Because the amount of secretions is small and can be discharged from the tear duct in time, it will not cause eye discomfort.

Healthy people have very little or no eye mucus. However, some people often have eye mucus in the corners of their eyes after waking up, especially some middle-aged and elderly people. When there is too much eye mucus, it may even stick to the eyelids, making it difficult to open the eyelids. Sometimes there is eye mucus during the day. What is going on?

There is a gland called meibomian gland on our eyelids. The oil it secretes can moisturize the eyelid edge and prevent tears from overflowing and eroding the skin.

When we sleep at night, these oils can make the eyelids close more tightly, preventing tears from evaporating and causing the cornea to dry out. When these oils mix with the dust that enters the eyes during the day and the residue left after the evaporation of tears, the so-called "eye boogers" are formed.

When certain eye diseases occur, the amount or nature of eye secretions will change. Usually, people will observe a significant increase in secretions and feel a series of discomforts, such as difficulty opening the eyes in the morning and blurred vision. When suffering from eye disease, the components of eye secretions, in addition to the above-mentioned components, will contain more shed tissue cells, inflammatory cells, vascular exudates, pathogens, etc.

Experts say that subtle changes such as a sudden increase in eye mucus can often be seen as signs of disease.

Some eye mucus is an inflammatory reaction caused by bacteria infection in the eyes. On the one hand, bacteria stimulate the meibomian glands, promoting oil secretion, causing the amount of oil on the eyelids and in the corners of the eyes to increase than usual; on the other hand, the blood vessels in the eyes dilate, and the white blood cells in the blood gather to kill foreign pathogens. The remains of these killed pathogens and the white blood cells that "gloriously died" in battle are mixed in the eye boogers.

As a result, not only does the amount of eye mucus increase, but some of it becomes yellowish white. Therefore, when you suffer from trachoma, conjunctivitis or other reasons that cause inflammation of the eyelid conjunctiva, the amount of eye mucus will increase. The immunity of middle-aged and elderly people is reduced, and their eyes are prone to inflammation. It can be said that too much eye mucus is a sign of eye inflammation and should be checked and treated in time.