Why is there boric acid in my eye drops?

Question

My eye doctor gave me an eye drop for my eyes because they get red all of the time but when i red the ingredients it says that it has BORIC ACID. The stuff they use to KILL Roaches... is that even safe for me to put in my EYE???? that is So creepy. What is up with that?

Answer 1

it's what gets the red out, that or it was mistakenly put into there at the factory and mistakenly listed on the ingredients.

Answer 2

Don't worry! Boric acid has been used as a professional and a home remedy for eyes for over a century. A mild solution of boric acid is beneficial for many conditions of the eye, including redness and irritation. People used to make it (boric acid powder + water) at home when I was young -- 40+ years ago.

This has nothing to do with its use with insects. In fact, that use came much later, and works only because insects have a completely different anatomy than other animals.

Answer 3

Time for a little classroom work in (yuk!) chemistry.  

For eye drops to work and maintain their effectiveness we must control different conditions while the medicine is stored in the bottle.  One of these factors is known as the pH which is the degree to which the liquid acts like an acid.  To maintain the correct pH level certain ingredients are added to the drop so that the pH does not fluctuate too much.  These ingredients are called buffering solutions.  Boric acid is one of the buffering ingredients in your drops.  There is no need to feel creepy.

Answer 4

to kill roaches in your eyes- jk

here:

Medicinal

It can be used as an antiseptic for minor burns or cuts and is sometimes used in dressings or salves or is applied in a very dilute solution as an eye wash in a 1.5% solution or 1 tbsp per quart of sterilised water. As an anti-bacterial compound, boric acid can also be used as an acne treatment. Boric acid can be used to treat yeast and fungal infections such as candidiasis (vaginal yeast infections) by inserting a vaginal suppository containing 600 mg of boric acid daily for 14 days (PMID 10865926). It is also used as prevention of athlete's foot, by inserting powder in the socks or stockings, and in solution can be used to treat some kinds of otitis externa (ear infection) in both humans and animals. The preservative in urine sample bottles (red cap) in the UK is boric acid.

Boric acid has the distinction of being the only known acid that is actually beneficial (rather than harmful) to the eyes, and as such is used by ophthalmologists and in some commercial eye drops.

Answer 5

You get different acids in nearly everything you eat or touch.  Yes, Boric acis powder (full strength) is used to kill roaches.  But in a diluted form, it can be used in eye drops.  It all has to do with the strength of the acid in its use.

Orange juice contains citric acid.  Vinegar is acetic acid.  Milk contains acid, etc.  They are all safe.