Eye Drops Vs. Distilled Water

Virtually all eye drops use water that has been distilled of purified in some way as the vehicle for the ingredients in product. Distilled water has been boiled and recollected as steam to remove the impurities, and this typically serves as the antibiotic in an eye drop or something as simple as a viscosity agent in an artificial tear eye drop.

Process of Distilling Water

• According to Distilled Water Facts, water contains impurities and toxins when it comes from the faucet. These impurities consist of molecules that are heavier than the water molecule. To distill water, an apparatus is set up that contains a pot of tap water, a heat source to boil the water, and a vessel to collect the steam at the top of the apparatus. The water is boiled and steam rises. The impurities remain in the container of tap water, and the steam collects in the vessel at the top of the apparatus, where it is condensed back into liquid water with no impurities.

Distilled Water in Eye Drops

• The most common types of eye drops typically available without a prescription are artificial tears, which are used to treat dry eyes. Distilled water makes up the bulk of artificial tears, which also typically contain a viscosity agent and a preservative to prevent bacteria from contaminating the eye drops.

Putting Distilled Water in an Eye

• In order to safely apply distilled water to an eye, a sterile applicator such as an eye dropper must be used. Any portion of this process that does not preserve sterility will result in exposing an eye to contaminated water. As long as sterile procedures are used the process is safe and can help rinse dirt from an eye. However, it quickly evaporates from the surface of the eye and consequently does not serve as an effective lubricant eye drop as do artificial tears.

Artificial Tear Eye Drops

• Many artificial tear eye drops contain distilled water, carboxymethyl cellulose and Purite. According to the Monthly Prescribing Reference, carboxymethyl cellulose is a viscosity-building agent, which is designed to make the eye drop thicker than plain distilled water, allowing it to stay on the eye for a longer period of time. Purite is a low concentration of hydrogen peroxide that functions as a preservative, ensuring no microorganisms such as bacteria can grow in the eye drops once they are bottled.

Direct Comparison

• While distilled water is a main ingredient in artificial tear eye drops---and all types of eye drops---distilled water is only effective as an eye wash. It is not an effective lubricant as it does not contain any viscosity agents to allow it to stay on an eye longer than a few seconds. Also, preservatives in eye drops allow them to be used more safely than using distilled water.