Glaucoma

Dear Dr. Mirkin: What can I do to reduce my risk for glaucoma?

    For many years I have been abused for not wearing
neckties because they don’t feel comfortable.  I am delighted to
tell you that a report in the British Journal of Ophthalmology
(August, 2003) shows that a tight necktie raises pressure in the
eye, which can cause glaucoma. 
    A tight necktie increased intraocular pressure in both
the normal subjects and glaucoma patients. Wearing a tight necktie
increased eye pressure in 60 percent of the men with glaucoma
and 70 percent of normal men. The tie constricts both the artery
carrying blood to your head and your vein carrying blood from
your head.  Since the pressure in the artery is so much greater
than that in the vein, blood is allowed to go to the head and is
restricted when it tries to leave the head to go back to the heart. 
This increases pressure in the head and eyes. This study may
not cause you to abandon your neckties, but be sure you don’t tie
them too tight.
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