According to experts, a change in how often you blink may be a sign of an underlying health problem.
On average, most adults blink about 14 to 17 times per minute, which is ideal for keeping the eyes moist and cleaning the surface of the cornea.
But blinking more or less can be a sign that something is wrong – ranging from immune disorders to Parkinson’s disease.
Research has shown that a Parkinson’s patient’s average number of blinks per minute can slow down to once or twice per minute, according to the American Parkinson Disease Association.
Blinking more or less than normal can be a sign that something is wrong – ranging from immune disorders to Parkinson’s disease.
Blinking is a natural reflex that keeps the eyes moist, cleans the surface of the cornea, and protects the eyes from rapidly approaching objects.
Studies have shown that the speed at which we naturally blink echoes dopamine activity in the brain.
The lower our dopamine levels, the more we focus on a subject and the less we blink.
A distinctive feature of Parkinson’s disease is the loss of dopamine-producing nerve cells, which can cause symptoms such as slower blinking and hand tremors.
Most people with Parkinson’s disease develop the disease after age 60, but early onset can occur before age 50.
Blinking more slowly can be an early sign of Parkinson’s disease, along with general slowness of movement and coordination difficulties, such as difficulty buttoning a shirt.
About half a million Americans are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
Blinking less frequently can also be a sign of Graves’ disease, which causes overproduction of thyroid hormones.
Symptoms are varied, but may include mild tremor in the hands or fingers, sensitivity to heat, weight loss, enlarged thyroid gland, bulging eyes, and thick, red skin on the shins or feet. .
Graves’ disease can occur at any age, but is most common in women over the age of 20.
This disease occurs in nearly 1 in 100 Americans.
In almost half of cases, the disease affects the eyes.
It is caused by a malfunction in the body’s immune system, but scientists are not sure if this happens.
People with Graves’ disease often experience enlargement of the eyelids. The combined protrusion of the eyeball and retraction of the eyelids can dry out and damage the cornea of the eye.
This leads to less frequent blinking because the eyelids are too tight. In severe cases, this can cause scarring of the cornea due to lack of protection.
A 2011 study found that people with Graves’ disease blinked slightly less frequently than healthy participants, averaging 13 blinks per minute.
However, this study indicates that healthy participants averaged 20 blinks per minute.
On the other hand, blinking more frequently can be a sign of fatigue when trying to perform a demanding task like driving while lethargic.
Excessive blinking can also occur as the body tries to compensate for dry eyes, which can occur for several reasons.
One of them is Sjögren’s syndrome, an autoimmune disease that causes dry eyes and mouth.
The disease sees the immune system attack the glands that produce tears and saliva.
This causes inflammation that damages the glands and limits their production of tears, which would normally keep the surface of the eyes moist.
Dry eye due to Sjögren’s syndrome may be itchy or burning, leading to increased blinking.
There are other reasons for temporary dry eyes, including hormonal changes and inflammation of the eyelid glands, which can increase a person’s blink rate as the body tries to keep the eyes moist.
Allergies can also increase blinking frequency.
When foreign bodies like pollen or dust get into the eyes, it can cause roughness of the conjunctiva – the mucous membrane that covers the front of the eye and lines the inside of the eyelids.
This can lead to watery eyes, itching, and excessive stimulation of the blink reflex.
Blinking frequently could also be a motor tic associated with Tourette syndrome.
Motor tics are sudden, uncontrollable movements such as exaggerated or constant blinking.
Tourette’s tics occur several times a day, almost every day.
Tics usually develop during childhood, but tend to lessen over time and many people outgrow them as adults.
Persistent tics, including Tourette syndrome, affect approximately 1.4 million people in the United States, according to the CDC.
However, many Americans suffer from facial tics that are not a sign of a serious health problem.