Yet More Fun Facts About the Eyes

Blog By Ivan J. Srut, O.D.
Chief of Optometry for St. Hope Foundation



Here are some more facts you may, or may not, have known about the eyes:

1. Your eyes focus on 50 different objects every second
2. Ommatophobia is a fear of the eyes
3. 80% of all learning comes through the eyes
4. Corneas are the only tissues that don’t have blood
5. There are about 39 people around the world that are blind
6. A fingerprint has 40 unique characteristics, but an iris has 256
7. The world’s most common eye color is brown, but are blue underneath the brown pigment
8. The pupil of the eye expands as much as 45% when you look at someone you love
9. Dolphins can sleep with one eye open
10. Seeing is so important that it takes up more than 50% of the brain’s functionality
11. Birds, cats and dogs have 3 eyelids
12. If the human eye were a camera it would have 576 megapixels
13. Dogs can’t distinguish between red and green
14. 80% of our memories are determined by what we see
15. We spend about 10% of our wake time with our eyes closed
16. Your eyes can detect a candle flame 1.7 miles away
17. Heterochromia is the term for having two different colored eyes
18. The average person blinks 12 times a minute
19. Humans can see more shades of green than any other color
20. The entire length of all the eyelashes shed by a human in their life is over 98 feet, with each eyelash having a lifespan of about 5 months

Until next time…