See in the dark with eye drops?

Monday, April 20 2015 | 00 h 00 min | Vision Science

Even though it’s being reported in Newsweek and other mainstream media that independent research group Science for the Masses has developed eye drops which they claim allows the user to see better in darkness, other researchers warn the drops could potentially cause permanent damage to the eye.

The drops contain chlorin e6, a chemical used in cancer therapies and which has been shown to improve night vision in mice, but has been shown in experiments in rabbits to cause damage to retinal cells.

The test subject, the group’s biochemical researcher, was administered the drops and then asked to identify symbols located ten metres away on varying backgrounds, and was able to identify individuals in the dark at up to 50 metres three times better than the control. No short term side effects were noted and the subject’s vision appeared to return to normal the next day.

“I think there is no evidence that use of chlorin e6 eye drops is safe at the doses described and I would strongly urge people not to administer this medication to the eyes,” says Dr. Jacque Duncan, an ophthalmologist at UCSF Medical Center.

Further information: http://hplusmagazine.com/2015/03/30/no-biohackers-did-not-just-discover-eyedrops-that-give-you-night-vision-and-using-them-might-damage-your-eyesight/