Gritty, sore, itchy, red, uncomfortable eyes are the commonest symptoms of dryness. It can feel as though there is a foreign body in your eye.

Long periods of screen work (mobile phones, laptops or PCs) or reading can significantly worsen dryness symptoms.

Dry and warm atmospheres especially air-conditioning, and car heaters also make the symptoms worse.

Additionally, there can be some blurring of vision, glare and sensitivity to light. Tolerance of contact lenses can be significantly reduced.

Strangely, sometimes dryness causes bouts of watering as the eye may react to irritation by brief over production of tears. Changes to the oily layer of tears can also make the tear film unstable. However, most watery eyes have other causes other than dryness.