Vitamin B2 for dry eyes

[CFS_for_19_years]

I have found four things to help me with dry eyes, as I've had them for 30 years, even prior to CFS/ME. A very experienced optician (one of many professionals I saw) chalked it up to 20 years of wearing hard contact lenses; he had witnessed this before. That could be one of many causes.

1. I've had three out of four puncta surgically cauterized to keep the tear film on my eyes, not the first step you want to take.

Here are the two things I need to take together to keep my eyes moist:
2. One - two tablespoons of flax oil/day.
3. Vitalyte - an electrolyte replacement drink recommended by Dr. Goldstein. When I stop drinking this I notice a change.
It takes 2 -3 weeks for the above to have any effect.

The other was given to me by a license acupuncturist/naturopath:

http://www.bestchinesemedicines.com/products/ming-mu-di-huang-wan-visex

It worked very well and then she told me I needed to stop taking it because it was to "cloying," or excessively sweet, which is referring to something in Traditional Chinese Medicine. I haven't used it in a while, but I just might give it another chance now.
4. Ming Mu Di Huang Wan - Visex Extract

 

[NK17]

I have extremely dry eyes and have a dx of Sicca Syndrome from my rheumatologist @ Ucla and the Sicca Initiative @ UCSF (where I had a biopsy of minor salivary glands, back in '12, to rule out seronegative Sjogren).

I'll look into vit B2 supplement again since I've other symptoms from the list ...

I remember reading a Japanese clinical study on PWCFS, from 1996, were all patients had dry eyes, in particular features of Sjogren, which is Sicca (dry from Latin).

Happy 4th to all my fellow sufferers .

 

[minkeygirl]

Plugs are really extreme if you just have dry eyes like eye do. It helps to find a doctor who really understands DES to determine the cause.

The first ophthalmologist I saw immediately wanted to put plugs in. I did research and found it worked for me to use the drops and if they are really bad I use Unisol 4 to get me over the hump.

 

[Sidereal]

I have had sicca symptoms as part of my ME for a while but last year when I was experimenting with methylation protocols things worsened dramatically in that regard, to the point of very dry bloodshot eyes, feeling as though I had sand in my eyes, ulceration/bleeding from the lips/mouth, trouble swallowing etc. At first I thought I had developed Sjogren's syndrome but of course serology was negative and the rheumatologist said to hold off on the lip biopsy.

Anyway, when I stopped the megadoses of methylation supps, these symptoms improved quite a bit though they are still there to some extent. I believe I developed a riboflavin deficiency as a result of supplementation with methyl B12 & folate. Supplementing B2 makes me feel awful though (severe fatigue, brain fog, feeling drunk) so kind of at a loss as to what to do. If I remember correctly, it was hypothesised on the B2 I love you thread that these symptoms were due to iron dumping from the liver and therefore increased oxidative stress.