Beverage Intake Not Associated With Dry Eye Disease Symptoms

Dry eye disease (DED) symptoms are not correlated with beverage intake, age, geographic location, or other demographic characteristics other than female sex, according to a study published in Clinical Ophthalmology.

Researchers included survey results from 615 volunteers, aged 18 years or older, in a cross-sectional study. They administered a questionnaire to obtain sociodemographic characteristics, as well as the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI), and the brief 15-item Beverage Intake Questionnaire (BEVQ-15). Participants who wore contact lenses, used certain medications, or had a history of eye disease, eye surgery, or autoimmune conditions were excluded from the study.  

The investigators found that 55.9% of volunteers had DED symptoms (23.6% mild, 17.2% moderate, 15.1% severe). They noted a significant correlation between sex and DED symptoms (P =.012), with the frequency of DED symptoms higher in women compared with men. Overall, 62.4% of women exhibited DED symptoms compared with 51.9% of men. Beverage intake was moderately associated with OSDI score (R = 0.27) but not DED symptoms (P =.501). They also observed no associations between age or geographic region and DED presence or severity (P =.161, P =.489 and P =.991, P =.971, respectively). 

“Women, in general, are more likely to develop DED symptoms compared to men due to the presence of more comorbidities that are considered risk factors for DED,” according to the investigators. “These factors include allergies, autoimmune diseases, neuropathic pain, and chronic pain syndrome.”

Study limitations include an over-representation of men and patients aged 18-34 years in the study sample, the omission of alcoholic beverages from the BEVQ-15, and reliance on self-reporting for data.

Reference

Alsahly RJ, Aldawsari AA, Alzaidy NF, Al Jabr FA, Alotaibi MM, Mohammed EY. Dry eye disease symptoms and its association with daily beverage intake among adults in Saudi Arabia. Clin Ophthalmol. 2022;16:453-460. doi:10.2147/OPTH.S355899