Rubbing Your Eyes
The skin around your eyes is one of the first areas on your face to show signs of aging. Rubbing your eyes can break tiny blood vessels under the skin's surface and cause dark circles and puffy eyes, as well as premature crow's feet and drooping eyelids.
Botox injections and cosmetic eyelid surgery can rejuvenate the eye area, but prevention is best: refrain from pulling and tugging at the skin around your eyes.
Forgetting Your Sunglasses
Exposing your eyes to the sun's harmful UV and high-energy visible (HEV) rays is a surefire way to prematurely age and damage your eyes and eyelids. Extended sun exposure leads to: sunburn of the front surface of the eye (photokeratitis); cataracts; macular degeneration; pinguecula and pterygium (unsightly growths on the eye); and even cancer of the eyelid.
Wear sunglasses that block 100 percent of UV rays and the most damaging HEV rays — even on overcast days!
Smoking
Smoking harms just about every organ in your body — including your eyes. Research has linked cigarette smoking to sight-threatening eye diseases such as cataracts, macular degeneration, uveitis, dry eyes and diabetic retinopathy.
In fact, smokers are up to four times more likely to go blind, compared with non-smokers. The good news is that quitting smoking, no matter what your age, can reduce your risk of developing a serious eye condition.
