The eyes are one of the most complex organs in the human body. They feed our brain with visual information. Your sight is part of your five senses, but that's not all! As you learn more about the eyes, you will realize how amazing they are. Here are 10 fascinating facts about your eyes.
# 1 - The eye is the fastest muscle in the human body
The expression "in the blink of an eye" means that it is possible to carry out an action quickly. This saying comes from the fact that the eye is the fastest muscle in the body. And besides being fast, it is also the most active muscle. Generally, you blink 15 to 20 times per minute.
# 2 - Eyes Can Have Beauty Marks
Do you have beauty marks? Well, whether you do or not, the inside of your eye may have one. This mole, called "choroidal nevus," is usually harmless and very common. However, like a beauty mark, it is important to monitor it. If your optometrist detects this during your eye exam, it will be noted in your file and reviewed during your yearly visits.
# 3 – Retinas are Unique
Another fascinating fact about your eyes is that your retina is as unique as your fingerprints. This is why retinal scans are used for security purposes.
# 4 – Your Eye Continues to Grow Throughout Your Life
Your eyes keep growing from the time you are an infant to adulthood. When we are born, the eyes are smaller or shorter, which results in most infants being far-sighted.
As babies interact with their environment, their axial length (the length of the eye) increases to reach emmetropia, which is the lack of prescription. A person's axial length can continue to change throughout their life in response to their environment, which is why prescriptions change over time.
# 5 - The Sun's Rays Are Damaging to the Eyes
Prolonged exposures to UVA and UVB rays can cause your eyes to get sunburned. If you've spent several hours in the sun without quality protective sunglasses, your eyes may become watery, itchy, and sensitive to light or become dry and grainy.
Repeated unprotected exposure to sunlight can have long-term consequences such as cataracts and macular degeneration. That is why we recommend using quality sunglasses when enjoying the outdoors, even if it's overcast.
# 6 - The Level of Melanin Influences the Colour of the Eye
Did you know that your eyes get their colour from a pigment called melanin? This natural pigment is also found in the skin, hair and inner ear. If you have brown eyes, it's simply because you have more melanin than people with blue eyes.
# 7 - The Appearance of Blue Eyes Throughout History
Scientists believe that the first blue-eyed person lived 6,000 to 10,000 years ago. If you have blue eyes, this person is likely your ancestor.
# 8 - 80% of Our Learning Comes from Visual Information
Experts say roughly 80% of what you learn is from visually presented information. Which makes your eyes one of the most important sensory organs. If your sense of taste or smell ever stopped working, your eyes would protect you from danger.
# 9 - The Iris Works Similarly to a Camera
Much like a camera's aperture, the iris controls the amount of light that enters the eye. The eyes adapt the size of the pupil to regulate the amount of light that reaches the back of the eye.
# 10 - 20/20 Vision is a Standard for Assessing Eyesight
Do you have 20/20 vision? Although it is thought to mean perfect vision, it is, in fact, normal vision. This means that you can read a chart at 20 feet, which is the standard in evaluating eyesight under normal lighting conditions.
