Why do our eyes turn red when we cry?

Sometimes a good cry can help let it all out, but why when you've had a big blub do your eyes give the game away by turning all red and blotchy? ... But when a bawl is required, the blood vessels that service the glands dilate to supply them as they go into overdrive, and we can start to see the redness. read more

Tears are fill of sodium chloride, which is why after we cry our eyes might be a bit itchy. You might often notice children rubbing their eyes after their cry, this is because of the dried sodium chloride salts. Which is why the skin around your eyes become puffy. When the tears stream down your face, the skin retains water content. read more

First, the redness. The human eye needs oxygen and nutrients, which are provided by little blood vessels. Normally these are practically invisible, but when the vessels are dilated, more blood will flow through them, which causes the eye to turn red. When we cry, the lacrimal glands in our eyes generate an increased amount of fluid (tears). read more

Red eyes. This is actually a very good question and it would seem like the answer would be simple and straight forward. The most likely cause is related to a valsalva maneuver. When we cry, we often hold our breath somewhat and this retards the flow of blood into the lungs and increases back pressure on the venous side of our circulation. read more