What Does The Color Of Our Eyes Tell Us?
Iridology is a discipline that studies the iris and was born in the seventeenth century. According to this discipline, it is possible to find out a predisposition to suffer certain health problems according to the color of our eyes.
Thus, according to this diagnostic tool, the color of the iris determines, from our birth, a predisposition to a state of health.
However, modern science has long shown that this discipline is totally false and that there is no relationship between eye color and predisposition to disease.
In this article we disprove some of the main theories of this ancient discipline. Remember that if you think you have a problem, you should always go to a medical professional and do not trust pseudoscientists of dubious origin. You want to know more? Keep reading.
What does the color of our eyes tell us?
According to this pseudoscience, the eyes would be divided into three categories based on which we would be more likely to suffer from one or another disease. To do this, they used an “iridology letter”. This collected parameters such as the color of the eyes, the lines of the iris, etc., according to which we would suffer from some diseases or others.
Blue and gray eyes
According to iridology, people with blue or gray irises may have the throat, nose, and ear as weak points. In turn, this predisposes them to colds, respiratory problems and irritation of the digestive mucosa. They would also be associated with kidney and joint problems.
This theory fell apart thanks to a study carried out in 1979. In this, a sample of 143 people was selected, 95% of whom had kidney problems. Next, iridologists were asked to identify which ones had kidney problems from their irises. His success rate was extremely low, so much so that it can be perfectly attributed to luck.
Brown and dark eyes
This hue ranges from light brown or hazelnut, to dark brown or almost black. In iridology, these irises show a predisposition to suffer imbalances related to the blood and the metabolism of certain minerals. Therefore, they would be related to disorders of the circulatory and digestive system.
In this regard, another experiment was conducted in 1988 in which 39 people with gallstones (part of the digestive system) and 39 healthy subjects were chosen. The iridologists’ hit rate was quite low, especially considering that this condition has fairly clear physical symptoms. This made it possible to demonstrate once again that iridiology has no validity as a diagnostic tool.
Green and mixed eyes
This last category would include all the colors that are between the intermediate range of the previous categories. To know our predisposition, we should first see if we have light or dark eyes.
Then, we would opt more for the predisposition of the first category or the second, respectively. But, as we have already seen, there is no scientific evidence to support the efficacy of any of the previous categories. In fact, its successes may be attributed more to chance than to science.
Final note
As you have seen in this article, iridology is not a science. Nor does it have any scientific backing to support its effectiveness. Moreover, numerous experiments have demonstrated its unreliability and its dependence on chance.
In fact, since 2019 the Spanish Government has included iridology in the category of pseudo therapy. In addition, it has launched the #CoNtest campaign. This seeks to offer truthful and accessible information on pseudo-therapies and pseudosciences in order to avoid the dangers that these can pose. In this sense, it is interesting to know the definition of pseudo-therapy that the Government manages:
It is always advisable to avoid this type of therapy. These do not have strong evidence of their effectiveness or quality controls, so they can pose a health risk. In principle, iridology would not be a danger, but that does not make it “harmless”. This practice can carry personal and financial risks, due to charlatans who dupe desperate families, taking their money and their hope.
