The ties that blind: formal attire can cause glaucoma

LONDON - Just when dress-down Fridays are going out of fashion, medical research has shown that formal business attire can be a serious health risk.

Studies in the United States have found that tightly knotted ties can increase the risk of the eye condition glaucoma.

A tie can constrict the jugular vein and put unhealthy pressure on the eyeball.

Glaucoma is often hereditary and can cause blindness. It develops when liquid excreted around the lens and the iris of the eye cannot drain properly, and the optic nerve is damaged.

Research by scientists at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology, found that a tight tie can cause the condition.

They tested the optic blood pressure of 20 healthy men and 20 men with glaucoma.

The participants were tested when they were wearing an open collar, then three minutes after putting on a tie and three minutes after loosening their ties.

Sixty per cent of the glaucoma sufferers and 70 per cent of the healthy men had higher pressure after wearing a tight tie.

Researchers noted that a raised pressure was the most important risk factor for glaucoma.

- INDEPENDENT