A Not Too Scientific Description of pH Value Eye Drops

You've used eye drops before and they've been wonderfully effective in alleviating dry eyes or other optical ailments you might have suffered. Or perhaps they've simply burned incessantly and you hate the vile little bottles more than anything in the world. No matter which side of the fence you sit on, you've probably wondered what's actually in that liquid you so readily plop into your eyes and what pH value eye drops contain. And more importantly, what the heck is pH?

Potential Hydrogen (pH) is used to measure the acidity or alkalinity of a water-based solution (something like eye drops, for example) and the scale used ranges from 0 to 14. Neutral solutions have a pH of 7, while increasingly acidic values decrease until 0 (highly acidic). Conversely, those solutions with greater alkalinity move upwards from 7 to 14 (highly alkaline). The human eye has a pH of approximately 7.5. Typically, eye drop pH value is around 6.5 - 8.5, but the pH value of an eye drop varies greatly and can, in fact, be anything from 4.5 - 11.5.

PH value eyedrops and its importance to your eyes

One of the many properties of modern lens drop solutions is the fact that they maintain pH balance. Too great a swing either way would be detrimental to the comfort and health of your eyes. Maintaining as neutral a pH as possible is therefore of utmost importance. That being said, the actual eye drop pH values can vary as much as they do because they are diluted naturally by the tears in your eyes. Just as important as pH is the various other buffer solutions and preservatives that go into the liquid. Some people actually prefer (or need) eye drops without preservatives and these too are on the market. So there you have it, the pH scale and what pH values in eye drops mean to you.

From Ciba Vision AQuify to Bausch & Lomb Moisture Eyes, whatever your eye drop needs, the links just to the right-hand side of this page should prove more than sufficient in helping you find the eye care product you want.

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