Smoking damages your eyes by introducing toxic chemicals and reducing blood flow, which increases your risk for age-related macular degeneration (AMD), cataracts, glaucoma, and diabetic eye disease.

It also worsens dry eye symptoms and can impair vision quality by contributing to blood vessel damage and oxidative stress in the eye tissues.

How Does Smoking Affect Your Eyes?

Smoking can affect the crucial parts of your eyes, including:

• Retina: The delicate, light-sensitive tissue that lines the inside of the eye.
• Lens: The clear part of the eye that allows light to pass to the retina and allows the eye to focus on objects at varying distances.
• Macula: The most sensitive part of the retina, and is the part of the eye that supplies sharp vision.

Smoking causes changes in the eyes that can lead to vision loss. If you smoke:

• You are twice as likely to develop AMD compared to people who don’t smoke.
• You are two or three times more likely to develop cataracts compared with people who don’t smoke.

What Are the Symptoms of Eye Diseases Related to Smoking?

Smoking cigarettes can cause two serious eye diseases: cataracts and AMD. Symptoms of these eye diseases related to smoking include:

Cataracts:

• Cloudy or blurry vision
• Colours that seem faded
• Sensitivity to light
• Trouble seeing at night
• Double vision

For more information on cataracts, see our full cataracts guide here.

AMD:

• Loss of the central vision you need to see details straight ahead
• Blurry or wavy areas in your vision
• Having a hard time recognising faces
• Needing more light to read or do other tasks in front of you

For more information on AMD, see our full AMD guide here.

It’s important to note that in the early stages of both of these diseases, you may experience no symptoms at all. It’s important to get eye exams on a regular basis to increase the chances of catching and treating these conditions as early as possible. For a comprehensive eye exam, book in with D.I. Blow Optician here.

What About Vaping?

“Vaping has risks that are different from smoking,” said J Kevin McKinney, MD. “Vaping solutions often have much higher nicotine levels than cigarettes. While they do not produce tar or carbon monoxide, they do have other chemicals with known and unknown negative effects. We are still learning the type and magnitude of the risks of e-cigarettes”.

Additional Eye Problems Associated with Smoking

Dry Eye

This is when your eyes do not have enough, or the right kind, of tears. Smoking with dry eye will make your eyes more likely to feel scratchy, sting, burn, or be red.

Diabetic Retinopathy

Smokers who also have diabetes risk getting diabetic retinopathy. Diabetic retinopathy occurs when blood vessels in the eye are damaged. It causes blurry or distorted vision and possibly blindness. Treatment includes medication, laser, or surgery.

For more information, read our complete guide on diabetic retinopathy here.

Optic Nerve Problems

People who smoke risk having optic nerve problems. The optic nerve connects the eye to the brain. Damage to this nerve can lead to blindness. Smoking can increase risk factors, which can lead to glaucoma, a disease that affects the optic nerve.

Uveitis

Smoking can lead to a disease that affects part of the eye called the uvea. This is the middle layer of the eye wall. Uveitis is when this layer becomes irritated. This disease causes a red eye, pain, and vision problems.

Thyroid Eye Disease (TED), also known as Graves’ Eye Disease

This is a disease of the body’s thyroid gland. One of the symptoms of thyroid eye disease, or TED, is bulging eyes. Smokers with TED risk worsening their eye condition with smoking. They can also lose vision.

Smoking and Pregnancy

If you smoke whilst pregnant, your baby is 5x more likely to get bacterial meningitis as a child. This is when tissues around the brain swell. Meningitis can cause eye infections, amongst other vision problems.

Smoking during pregnancy can also increase your risk of giving birth too early. Premature birth can lead to a serious eye problem called retinopathy or prematurity. The baby may have permanent vision loss or blindness.

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Protecting your eyesight means protecting your future. Smoking greatly increases the risk of conditions like AMD, cataracts, and optic nerve damage, often with no early warning signs. Alongside quitting smoking, a good diet plays a real protective role too — our guide to the link between diet and eye health covers the foods that help most. The best step you can take to safeguard your vision is to quit smoking and attend regular eye exams. At D.I. Blow Opticians, we’re here to help you maintain healthy eyes for life. Book your comprehensive eye test with us today.

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Whilst AMD does not cause total blindness, it can make everyday activities like reading and recognising faces difficult. Without treatment, your vision may get worse. This can either happen gradually over several years (dry AMD) or quickly over a few days or weeks (wet AMD).

The exact cause of AMD is unknown; however, it has been linked to age, smoking, high blood pressure, being overweight, and having a family history of AMD.

Symptoms of AMD

AMD affects the middle, or central, part of your vision. It will not affect your peripheral vision. You can get it in one eye or both.

AMD is a progressive disease, that means symptoms will typically get worse over time.

Symptoms include:
• Seeing straight lines as wavy or crooked.
• Blurred vision when looking directly at something.
• Colours seeming less bright than they used to.
• Seeing things that are not there (hallucinations).

Sometimes AMD may be found during a routine eye test before you have symptoms. This is why booking in for eye tests regularly is crucial.

When getting diagnosed for AMD, an optometrist will look at the back of your eyes and check your vision.

Types of AMD

There are two types of AMD you should be aware of:

Dry AMD (Atrophic AMD)

Dry AMD is caused by a build-up of a fatty substance called drusen at the back of the eyes. This is the more common type of AMD.

There are 3 stages of Dry AMD: early, intermediate, and late.

Dry AMD will get worse gradually, usually over several years. There is no treatment unless it develops into Wet AMD.

Wet AMD (Neovascular AMD)

Wet AMD is caused by the growth of abnormal blood vessels at the back of the eyes. This is the less common type of AMD.

Wet AMD can get worse quickly, sometimes in days or weeks. There is treatment available to help stop your vision from getting worse.

Treatment for Wet AMD

The main treatment for Wet AMD is eye injections.

Eye Injections
• Injections given directly into the eyes.
• Stops vision getting worse in 9 out of 10 people and improves vision in 3 out of 10 people.
• Usually given every 1, 2, or 3 months for as long as necessary.
• Drops numb the eyes before treatment – most people have minimal discomfort.
• Side effects include feeling like there’s something in the eye, and redness and irritation of the eye.

Who is at Risk of AMD?

You risk of AMD increases as you get older. People age 60 and older are more likely to have AMD. The risk of AMD is also higher for people who:

• Have a family history of AMD.
• Are Caucasian.
• Smoke.

How Can I Lower my Risk of AMD?

According to research, you may be able to lower your risk of AMD by:

• Quitting smoking or just not starting.
• Exercising regularly.
• Maintaining healthy blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
• Eating healthy foods, including leafy green vegetables and fish.

OCT and AMD

Ocular Coherence Tomography is an advanced eye scan for people of all ages. Similar to ultrasound, OCT uses light rather than sound waves to illustrate the different layers that make up the back of the eye. A 3D OCT unit captures a digital photograph of the surface of the eye at the same time and this can be cross referenced across any areas of concern.

The major benefit of this machine is that it allows your optometrist to see both the back of your eye and a 3D image to look beneath the surface of the regular retinal image. Your optometrist can now find the exact state and location of a particular eye condition. They can review the images on a PC screen and pin point areas of concern by digitally peeling the layers back until they define what it is they have identified as requiring further investigation.

How Does AMD Look on an OCT Scan?

An OCT scan can measure the thickness of the retina and identify any fluid filled areas. OCT scans also examine the choroid, a layer of tissue between the sclera – the white outer layer – and the retina at the back of the eye. The choroid contains blood vessels that supply the eye with nutrients and oxygen.

Images from an OCT scan can show:
• Drusen, small deposits of protein and lipids that collect under the retina.
• The structure of the retina.
• Any new or abnormal blood vessels.
• Any bleeding within the eye.

Using this machine, we can more confidently diagnose, manage and refer you to a specialist for further treatment, should this be required. Striving to provide the best eye care, D.I. Blow Opticians can now provide this state of the art diagnostic tool with your eye test, if you so desire. There may be an additional charge for the OCT scan, but the benefits are obvious. The software can automatically detect even the most subtle changes in the retina with every eye test you take. This gives an invaluable on- going record of the health and condition of your eyes.

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If your vision continues to get worse, you might want to consider registering your sight loss. This can help make it easier to claim financial benefits, such as help with health costs.

For general guidance on eye health, the College of Optometrists’ Look After Your Eyes service has AMD-specific information, and The Macular Society has information you might find useful. It also has a helpline on 0300 3030 111.

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