Eye Drop Ingredient Safety

So I wasn't sure if this was the right place to put this but.

My girlfriend works for an opthamologist. She sometimes brings me eye drop samples home because I tend to get a lot of # in my eyes at work and work in a dusty environment. Today she got these:



Apparently they're new on the market or something. I've skimmed through the ingredients of drops she's brought me before and there usually wasn't much in them. But I took a look at these ones...



If the picture's not all that clear the ingredients are:

Propylene glycol, hydroxypropyl guar, mineral oil dimyristoyl phosphatidylglycerol, polyoxyl 40- stearate, sorbitan tristearate, boric acid, sorbitol,, edetate disodium, POLYQUAD® (polyquaternium-1)0.001%, preservative, and purified water. May contain HCL and or NaOH to balance pH.

So immediately, the few ingredients I recognized, seem like things that should not go in your eyes.

Hydrochloric acid and sodium hydroxide probably shouldn't either but I understand why those are there.

So I looked up some info about the safety of eye drops in general. There didn't seem to be much about it other than a few about over usage.

I looked up the various ingredients. Most of them are either food additives or cosmetics ingedients. Just about all of them have warnings about causing eye irritation.

Personally, my chemistry isn't necessarily the best but, i'm not too sure how mixing a bunch of things together that aren't all that great for your eyes are supposed to be good for them.

I was wondering if anyone may know about such things has thinks about the ingedients in eye drops. Or maybe If anyone knows some alternatives with less scary ingredients. It reminds me almost of the chemical medley that goes into toothpaste.

Some of those ingredients are preservatives.
Single use vials are usually preservative free and have fewer ingredients you cannot pronounce.

I have glaucoma and tend to be careful what I use in my eyes.
So, for several reasons, I'd look for another drop.

GenTeal is good, and has fewer ingredients.
Refresh is goo, too. www.refreshbrand.com...

Murine sucks.

My eye doctor who's one of the top in the country, is real big about not putting anything OTC in your eyes except saline solution (contact solution), which is basically just salt water. Not sure about lubricating eye drops, but anything that's advertised about getting the red out, is just a gimmick that does nothing but temporarily contract and recess the blood vesicles, hiding the redness and in effect prolonging any under lying issues.

It says right on the box that those ingredients are to adjust PH or acidity, you neither want something too acidic or too base on your eyes. If you’re that worried about it get some PH test strips and see what the PH is I’m sure it won’t be too acidic.
ETA I use Refresh Tears and it does good for me one active ingredient.

a reply to: dug88

I worked in a steel factory back in the day. After a lot of digging around I found Colloidal Silver to be great for my eyes, among other things. Do your own research and see what you come up with. Will probably be worth your time!

I made my own to be sure of absolute purity while keeping the price tag dirt cheap. There's a small initial investment for the unit and .999 pure silver rods, as well as some amber glass bottles to store them in. The rods last a long time so the main ongoing cost is distilled water and cheap batteries.

I make a specific dose for my eyes, and another for drinking. And then a really high dose bottle for when I'm stuck around sick people.

I wouldn't and not because of the ingredients but because that box looks like he'll.

What they do, play soccer with it?

Bicarbonate of Soda dissolved in water works wonders for me

a reply to: Muninn

Lmao that box been through the ringer.
Its seen some $***!

originally posted by: VividestSum93
a reply to: Muninn

Lmao that box been through the ringer.
Its seen some $***!

I just opened it...

We use NAOH at work to balance pH of Sulfuric acid rinse water.
The glycol doesn't sound too good either

a reply to: dug88


Try using urine as eye drops.

originally posted by: visitedbythem
We use NAOH at work to balance pH of Sulfuric acid rinse water.
The glycol doesn't sound too good either

Which is all they are doing is adjusting the PH.

i take single use sealed sterile viles of whatever # is in the first aid cab at work.

whatever it is it works.

originally posted by: BigDave-AR

originally posted by: visitedbythem
We use NAOH at work to balance pH of Sulfuric acid rinse water.
The glycol doesn't sound too good either

Which is all they are doing is adjusting the PH.

Yup the last two ingredients do sure say they are used to balance pH as people keep saying and is written in my OP and on the box. The rest of the ingredients are not for that...and are what I'm wondering about.

originally posted by: dug88

originally posted by: BigDave-AR

originally posted by: visitedbythem
We use NAOH at work to balance pH of Sulfuric acid rinse water.
The glycol doesn't sound too good either

Which is all they are doing is adjusting the PH.

Yup the last two ingredients do sure say they are used to balance pH as people keep saying and is written in my OP and on the box. The rest of the ingredients are not for that...and are what I'm wondering about.

I missed that you wrote that in the OP I was just going off you calling those two out specifically for questionable use on the eyes which is why I chimed in.

originally posted by: TinySickTears
i take single use sealed sterile viles of whatever # is in the first aid cab at work.

whatever it is it works.

I take gloved and pens, and leave the eye drops