Why Do We Blink Our Eyes?

To oil, lube, and filter the eyes.

Blinking, as opposed to batting, our eyes automatically supplies two (2) forms of moisture to our eyes - to keep them from drying out, and to keep foreign matter from entering and irritating our eyes. Eyelids themselves, our built-in “windshield wipers,” are merely folds of skin, controlled by muscles capable of expanding and contracting so rapidly, that blinking does not impair our vision. Mother Nature lined the rims of our eyelids with 20-30 sebaceous, oil-producing glands, which are located between our eyelashes, and are invisible to the naked eye. Blinking automatically coats the eyelid and eyelashes with the lubricant it secretes, to prevent them from drying out.

Blinking also protects the eye from dryness by irrigating, not by irritating, the eye. The eyelid, through suction, automatically draws the fluid we cry with from the well we refer to as the tear duct over the eyeball, to irrigate, and to moisturise the eye. The process is similar to the manner in which the farmer uses water to irrigate his crops during a dry spell.

Yet another benefit of blinking is to shield the eye from foreign bodies. Our eyelashes, short, curved, hairs, attached to the eyelids, serve as dust catchers, as the blinking reflex causes them automatically to lower, when exposed to harsh elements. Nature endowed the camel with extraordinarily long, curly, eyelashes, to protect his eyes from sudden sandstorms in the desert. Incidentally, the “camel eyelash” look is one many women attempt to duplicate by using an eyelash curler! Eyebrows, by the way, also serve their purpose, as they catch the run-off perspiration produces.