Focus on Eyes: Know your holiday eye safety before causing serious ocular injury

Holidays are a time for celebration and family gathering. Holiday eye hazards can be avoided with attention to some safety tips.

Christmas trees

Both real and faux Christmas trees can cause eye injuries.

The tree needles can poke the eyes when decorating the trees. The tree branches can also flex and hit the face and the eyes. The eyes may be scratched by the tree needles or branches.

On rare occasions, Christmas trees may fall down. The fallen tree and broken glass ornaments can lacerate the eyelids and puncture the eyes.

When these accidents happen, protect the injured eyes with the bottoms of paper cups and seek emergency evaluation immediately.

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Arts and crafts

Many families with children have arts and craft projects to decorate Christmas trees. These projects usually involve glitter and glue.

When glitter accidentally gets into the eyes, avoid rubbing the eyes or picking them out with fingers.

Flush the eyes with artificial tears, sterile eye wash or saline solution.

Glue can stick the eyelashes together. When the glue hardens and forms crystals with sharp edges, they can irritate the eyes and cause corneal abrasion.

Try flushing the eyes with warm water in the shower or sink. Check with your doctors if the eyes are still uncomfortable.

Baking goodies

Cooking and baking are also a part of family traditions during the holidays.

After touching rare meats, wash the hands thoroughly and avoid rubbing the eyes to prevent bringing bacteria into the eyes.

If hot liquids and grease splash in the eyes, immediately flush them with cold water. If there is persistent burning sensation and blurry vision, get urgent care promptly.

Pop the cork

Many people ring in the New Year with a champagne toast.

Careless opening of the champagne bottle can cause serious eye injuries, including bleeding, glaucoma, cataract, retinal detachment and permanent vision loss.

The proper way for opening a champagne bottle is to chill the bottle and never shake it.

Be sure to point the bottle away from anybody.

When opening, hold the bottle at a 45 degree angle.

After removing the foil and the wire hood, place a towel over the top of the bottle.

Slowly and firmly twist the base of the bottle and grasp the cork securely. The pressure inside the bottle will push the cork out.

The towel over the bottle prevents the cork from popping out quickly.

There are many video tutorials online about the safe way of opening champagne bottles.

Practice eye safety procedures so there will be no unpleasant surprises during the holiday season.

Dr. Frederick Ho, the medical director of Atlantic Eye MD and Atlantic Surgery and Laser Center, is a board certified ophthalmologist. Atlantic Eye MD is located at 8040 N. Wickham Road in Melbourne. To make an appointment please call (321) 757-7272. To learn more visit AtlanticEyeMD.com.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: These holiday activities can cause serious eye injury if not careful