Contributing Writers for Wake Up World
I’m sure most of you have heard the expression, ‘your eyes are the window to your soul’. Well, in fact, not only are they the window to our soul, but they are also important indicators of our overall health.
Eyes have many signs that tell us what is happening in our bodies. Unfortunately, given the ‘polluted’ world we live in today, many of our bodies are loaded with toxins. As a result of this toxic load, there are many physical characteristics that present themselves over time. Sickness presents itself in many interesting ways, and for the eyes, there are several indicators as to what is going wrong or right with the body. Everything is connected in the body.
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When something is not operating well, there are physical signs (sometimes invisible) that help us determine what is plaguing us. The problem today is that many of us have lost this ancient knowledge. Many of us turn to a medical professional for the answers because we don’t know any better, and they have been deemed the experts by society. The fact is that you have the power to be your own expert, as nobody knows your body better than yourself. To get you started, we have provided you with some tell-tale physical signs the eyes manifest when your body is sick.
Dark Circles Under Eyes
Some believe that dark circles under the eyes is an indication that one is not getting adequate sleep, by staying up watching too much T.V. or simply just appear if we misbehave (excessive partying) or are under a great deal of stress. In some other groups, dark circles are believed to be caused as a direct result of too much potassium in the diet; this may be true, but we haven’t seen much evidence on this. Simply speaking, dark circles under your eyes is directly related to oxidizing hemoglobin. In other words, they manifest as a result of “leaky capillaries” and are visible due to the thin skin that covers the area under your eyes. Essentially, what this boils down to is that there is an issue with your liver; it is not working optimally. This may be due in part to genetics, allergies, or iron deficiency – all usually caused by what we are or are not ingesting.
“Bags” Under Eyes
“Bags” or puffy eyes are usually present as a result of accumulated fat around the eye area. This happens when the septum surrounding the eyeball weakens, causing the outer layer of fat within the socket to sink forward – making it look like you have literal “bags” under your eyes. The underlying cause behind this phenomena is an issue with your kidneys. Essentially, if your kidneys are not effectively cleaning toxins out of your body, physical signs will begin to manifest themselves, especially in and around the eyes. Some other studies suggest that puffiness is also an indicator of too much salt in the diet.
Sunken Eyes
This is a common symptom in our society today. It is by no accident that many of us are suffering from it. Sunken eyes is usually the cause of a dehydrated body. Many are ingesting several coffees, pop/soda, or pre-packaged fruit juices daily, without even knowing that each of these ‘beverages’ have a diuretic effect and are severely dehydrating. Couple this with drinking little water, you have a body that is starved of water, and thus it is unable to function properly. By increasing your intake of water and decreasing the amount of diuretic beverages you drink in a day, it is almost guaranteed that you will see positive results immediately.
Yellow Eyes
This manifests itself when the white of your eye (sclera) turns yellow. This is usually a sign of jaundice, where there is a buildup of bilirubin in the blood. Bilirubin is a yellow-colored pigment that is produced by the breakdown of old red blood cells. Bilirubin is normally processed by the liver and released into the intestine in bile before being excreted from the body through the feces. As you have probably guessed it, the common cause of yellow eye is directly related to a liver problem. A daily dose of fresh squeezed beet or lemon juice should help resolve the discoloration in a few weeks.
Bulging Eyes
Also known as proptosis or exophthalmos, bulging of the eyes manifests itself due to a condition with the thyroid gland. Both eyes generally protrude in people whom have Graves disease (an autoimmune disease indicating an overactive thyroid). In Graves disease, swelling, fibrosis and scarring may occur within the eye muscles surrounding the eye. This crowds the bony orbit where the eye sits, causing the eyes to bulge forward. In some rare cases however, it may mean that there is a benign tumor that exists behind the eye.
Double Vision
Double vision generally occurs when the eyes are misaligned. There may be several reasons why someone may be experiencing this condition; for example, they may have a cornea problem (due to infection or scars), lens problem (cataracts), muscle problem (graves disease or myasthenia gravis), nerve problem (multiple sclerosis or uncontrolled diabetes) or brain problem (strokes or migraine headaches).
Blood Vessels
Your eyes are one of the few areas of the body that have exposed blood vessels. For this reason, these blood vessels can tell us a lot about the individuals health. In some cases, inflamed blood vessels in your eye can be the direct result of an irritant, allergy, or in some cases a viral infection. In other cases however, it has been shown that a continued state of inflamed blood vessels can be directly related to more serious issues such as hypertension or diabetes.
As you can see, the eyes provide us with many indicators about our health. When you are suffering from a health related issue, take a look in the mirror, and determine whether or not you can pinpoint the problem by gazing into your eyes. These are but a few examples of what we can look for when trying to figure out some of the issues we are experiencing with our eyes.
Sources:
1. webmd.com
2. lookupinfo.org
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About the Authors
Jordan and Kyla are passionate about health; together, they have overcome many illnesses through dietary and lifestyle changes, and the art of practicing a positive mindset daily. Kyla is currently studying to become a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and Reiki Master, and Jordan is currently learning about traditional North American medicinal herbs, in hopes of becoming a Certified Herbalist. For more information, please visit the following sites; guidinginstincts.com, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, or Pinterest
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