Did you know we all blink? Well, more specifically, all creatures—big and small—that have eyelids blink. While most of us know blinking helps clean, moisturize and protect our eyes from irritants, you may be surprised by these eye-opening fast facts about blinking.
Blinking is one of the fastest movements.
There’s a reason people say, “in the blink of an eye.” It’s one of the fastest movements we make, and the eye is the fastest muscle in the body.
Did you know we blink so fast that it often only lasts one-tenth of a second? Some people may blink up to five times in one second!
Babies blink less frequently than adults.
While we don’t know why exactly, we do know that babies blink less often than adults. Typically, a baby will blink just twice or less within a minute. Adults, on the other hand, blink an average of 15 times in a minute.
Sometimes we blink less.
There are moments when we blink less. For instance, when we are focused and intent on learning, we blink less. When we are reading, we blink less. When we are looking at a screen, we might blink less.
Ironically, when we daydream, we tend to blink less too.
Sometimes we blink more.
Several culprits could lead to excessive blinking, including stress, fatigue and habit. Eye irritations, eye strain and facial tics are other factors that could cause someone to blink more.
Women allegedly blink more.
Okay, this is one of the fast facts about blinking that is more rumor than fact, but we still think it’s interesting! It might be hard to prove, but a popular belief is that women blink twice as much as men.
One theory as to why is that women have more estrogen in their systems, so it’s hormonal.
We blink 7,884,000 times a year on average.
Overwhelming, right? But if we break it down, research suggests the average person blinks about 15 times a minute. That means we blink about 900 times in an hour, or about 21,600 times a day.
Multiply that by 365, and we get our grand total of more than 7.8 million times a year! That’s a lot of blinking.
Summary
These fast facts about blinking are a fun way to appreciate our amazing eyes! Not only are the eyes the fastest muscle in the body, they are also the most active. And when you actively notice any changes in your eyesight, or blinking, make an appointment at your local Mississippi Eye Care clinic. Keep reading our blogs for more about eyes, eye health and eye care!
