What are eye boogers?
When you think of all the things we have in common as humans, eye boogers probably aren't near the top of the list. Even still, they're pretty much universal, since everybody gets the morning eye crust from time to time. Eye boogers can seem mysterious, but a surprising amount of research has been done on this topic. Scientists know more about them than you'd guess, and some of those answers may surprise you.
What are eye boogers?
Eye boogers are those crispy little deposits that appear in the corners of your eyes overnight. You may not get them every single night, but every few days you're likely to wake up, rub your eyes, and feel little crumbles coming loose. Some people call this stuff "sleep," as in "rub the sleep out of your eyes." If you know a doctor or are particularly nerdy, you might also referred to it as eye discharge or rheum, which is the technical term. It's all the same stuff, and it comes from basically the same place.
Causes of eye boogers
Your eyes are soft and delicate, so to keep them safe you have tear glands over the outside part of the top of your eyes. These secrete watery mucus almost all the time, which gradually works its way across the eye surface toward the inner corner of your eyes. The spot where your eyes meet the bridge of your nose has an opening called the tear duct, which drains the mucus away.
Most people blink several times a minute during the day, which evenly distributes the mucus over the eye and helps drive it into the duct. You don't blink while you sleep, so this process can get a little derailed. Your tear glands don't stop production, so over several hours, the mucus can get piled up at the mouth of the tear duct. Once there, the water evaporates, leaving a sticky protein mess that eventually hardens into the eye crispies we all know and love.
Types of eye boogers
Even though this is a normal process, it can get out of whack for various reasons. Under some circumstances, you might get lots of eye boogers. Sometimes they may have different textures and consistencies or odd colors, and occasionally, you might get those weird ones that stick to your skin and have to be washed off with a wet rag. Some factors that can cause these changes include:
- Allergies: Allergies can make your eyes runny, which increases the production of tears and mucus. The more your eyes make, the more there is to build eye boogers overnight. While there's not a one-to-one relationship between allergens and mucus production, you can generally expect more eye discharge while the grasses and the trees are producing pollen.
- Infections: Your eyes can host viral and bacterial infections, which can be serious or so mild you barely notice them. Even a mild infection is likely to trigger an upswing in tear production, which can result in gummy eye discharge. If you suddenly get way more eye boogers than you're used to, gently clean the area with a warm, damp cloth, and try not to rub your eyes. If the problem continues or you get conjunctivitis, also known as pink eye, it's a good idea to call your doctor and ask for advice.
- Dry eyes: The purpose of tears is to keep the eyes moist and protected. If your body senses your eyes are too dry, it responds by increasing tear production. This encourages eye boogers, and the ongoing dryness can make them dry out pretty badly. If you get sharp, crumbly eye boogers, dry eyes might be the cause. You might try some eye drops right before bed, but there's no guarantee this will last the whole night. If your room has dry air, you should think about running a humidifier or mister to fix the issue.
- Foreign objects: There isn't much your eyes can do to get rid of foreign objects except gush tears to wash them out. Dust, small bits of wood, or grit can all make your eyes snap shut and water like crazy. You do what you can to clear your eyes, but in a severe case, one or both of your eyes might overproduce tears all night, building up a stockpile of eye boogers for you in the morning.
- Normal variations: Finally, your eye discharge might have no cause — or at least, no abnormal cause. Everybody is different. Some people like pineapple on their pizza and some people are wrong. It’s fine. Similarly, one of humanity’s little quirks is that some of us produce a large amount of eye boogers. It’s not the kind of thing you write poetry about (although if you do, we absolutely want to read it), but it's normal and a lot of people know what you're going through.
Preventing and managing eye boogers
While eye boogers are close to universal, you're not completely helpless when it comes to preventing and managing them. There's a lot you can try if you're looking to limit their formation, and you have plenty of options for dealing with them when they show up anyway. There really isn't a cure-all fix for eye boogers, but you can experiment to find an approach that works for you.
Prevention and managing the underlying causes
You can start the war on eye boogers with prevention. Even if you don't know exactly what's causing the increase in eye discharge, you can experiment with a few approaches that generally reduce mucus production. If you find something that works for you, keep doing it. If no single approach works as much as you would like, you can move on to another remedy or combine approaches to get better results.
- Room humidifiers: Your eyes produce tears to keep moist, and they have to do less of it if the air around you is already a bit damp. Setting up a humidifier in your bedroom might result in less flow across your eyes, and what you do get may not completely dry out before you wake up. This can be a good or a bad thing, depending on whether you'd like to have smaller and softer eye boogers. (That’s a sentence you probably weren’t expecting to read today. We challenge you to use it in conversation.)
- Antihistamines: Antihistamines can dry out your eyes the same way they dry out your nose, and this is a mixed blessing. The reduced flow of mucus across your eyes (now there’s something you’ll be thinking about when you fall asleep) tends to reduce the buildup of eye boogers, but the dryness might trigger increased flow if the antihistamines wear off before you wake up.
- Eye drops: Putting a few drops in your eyes before bed can help keep them moisturized, which helps keep the tears moving along and may reduce buildup. Start with unmedicated drops, since you're just trying to keep things moist, and consider the medicated ones only if you feel you need to, and your eye care professional doesn't object.
- Removing your contact lenses: Don’t wear contacts while you sleep. That said, a lot of people forget they're wearing contacts, especially when they're really tired, and wearing them while you sleep can potentially encourage the growth of eye boogers. If you find you're frequently forgetting your contacts, consider leaving a note near your toothbrush or another place where you'll see it right before bed.
- Talking to an eye booger professional: If nothing works for you, you should ask your eye care professional about the issue. They might just surprise you with some prevention ideas you hadn't thought of.
Daily eye hygiene and getting rid of eye boogers
No matter what you do to prevent them, eye boogers are probably just going to be a part of life. Embrace it. Fortunately, when they do occur, they're pretty easy to clean up. Most soft eye boogers can be wiped away with your hand (wash them after, please, let's not be savages) — but if you find that too gross, you can use a section of tissue or the end of a cotton swab. If you have hard eye boogers, or you don't want to risk rubbing a sharp little crunchy into your delicate eye, try putting a damp cloth over the area for a few seconds before gently wiping it all clean.
Eye boogers and you: the truth
Eye boogers are normal, albeit a little gross, and they're going to happen from time to time. You can do a lot to prevent them, and when you do get them, you can take care of the issue pretty easily. One of the best things you can do to prevent eye discharge is to make sure you're wearing fresh, clean contact lenses that have been prescribed for you. Find the contact lenses you need with a professional eye exam near you.
FAQs
Are eye boogers contagious?
Eye boogers are the result of excessive eye discharge that dries overnight. They aren't contagious, although if they're caused by an infection, the germs might be.
Should I be concerned if my eye boogers have a strong odor?
Eye boogers should be odorless. A strong or noticeable aroma may be a sign of infection, especially if it's fruity or musty.
When should I seek medical attention for persistent or concerning eye discharge?
You want to be conservative about eye health. If you're ever concerned about an eye-related symptom, you should see your eye care professional right away. You should also consult a professional if your eye discharge contains blood, has an odd color or odor, is associated with pain, or you've hurt yourself by rubbing away a sharp one.