Doctor issues warning over eye-rubbing - and you need to stop right now

One of the most common actions we perform every day, without even a second thought, is a cause of a serious & incurable eye condition, warn doctors.

If you're thinking it's about sitting too close to your computer monitor, or staring at the phone screen all day, it's not. But those aren't healthy either.

One Ophthalmologist in particular, Dr Imane Tarib has taken to TikTok to raise awareness of Keratoconus - an eye condition that cannot be cured - and how rubbing your eyes (both gently and knuckle-rubbing aggressively) can lead to developing the condition.

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This is because, as you should know, the eyes are extremely sensitive - and pretty squishy.

According to the Mayo Clinic, persistent rubbing can alter the shape of the cornea from its original dome into a more cone-like shape. This has an obvious effect on vision - it can blur and cloud everyday life for someone with the condition.

Keratoconus is a life-long condition with no current cure, so you're going to have to stop rubbing your eyes immediately, no matter how itchy they are.

Even without the threat of Keratoconus, you shouldn't be touching your eyes anyway. All manner of bacteria call our hands home, and you don't want any of that near your specs. What's more, you can burst blood vessels if you're rubbing them too much.

Dr Tarib isn't going to let you suffer though. Her advice for itchy eyes? Use some eye-drops, or like in the video above, rub around the eyes with clean hands - don't push into or around the eyeball like you might usually do.

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