The tissue that covers the front of your eye, called the cornea, has a dome shape that not only helps protect your eye but also directs light to the back of your eye. If you have damage to the cornea from an injury, infection or other condition, you could experience complications such as corneal scarring. You cannot reverse corneal scarring with medications or supplements, but talk to your doctor about herbs that may help treat conditions that lead to corneal damage.
Infection
An infection may occur if you have conditions such as a corneal scratch, dry eye or foreign body. Infections may also occur if you do not properly wear or clean contact lenses. Herbal supplements such as licorice root may help resolve infections that stem from viruses. Your doctor may recommend that you take licorice root in capsules or extracts. Elderberry, a product of the European elder tree, may also help resolve infections. You can use elderberry as a tea, or you can take extracts and capsules containing this supplement.
Inflammation
Corneal inflammation may result from infections, but factors such as an eye injury or eye surgery may also contribute to swelling in these tissues. Ginger root has anti-inflammatory properties that could help reduce inflammation before resulting in permanent scarring. You can take extracts and ginger capsules, or your doctor may recommend chewing on a piece of fresh ginger. You can also make tea from fresh or dried ginger. Turmeric, a root similar in appearance to ginger, could also help reduce inflammation. As with ginger, you can use turmeric in tea, capsules or extracts.
Neovascularization
Corneal neovascularization may cause scarring, and this condition occurs when blood vessels grow into the clear tissue of the cornea. This may stem from factors such as eye trauma, but contact lens misuse or poor hygiene may cause neovascularization as well. Spirulina, a blue-green algae, may offer some benefits. In a 2009 study, researchers at the Shandong Eye Institute in Qingdao, China discovered that using polysaccharide, an extract from spirulina, may help prevent the progression of neovascularization.
Considerations
Signs of a corneal condition may include blurry vision, eye irritation, pain or a cloudy appearance to the front of your eye. If you experience these or any other unusual symptom, contact your eye doctor immediately. Do not use any herbal supplement without first consulting your doctor since herbal remedies could interact with medications or health problems you may have.
References
- Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired: Corneal Scarring
- National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Licorice Root
- National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine: European Elder (Elderberry)
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Ginger
- Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center: Turmeric
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Spirulina
- Molecular Vision Biology and Genetics in Vision Research: Inhibitory Effects of Polysaccharide Extract from Spirulina Platensis on Corneal Neovascularization
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