Why do we blink?

I guess you’ve noticed that your eyes blink rather regularly. Most people blink about twenty-five times a minute while they are awake. Tear glands in the outside corners of your eyes are always making tears, and the blinking of your eyelids wipes them away. That keeps the front surfaces of your eyes moist and clean.

Blinking is controlled by a reflex, an automatic nerve action. Besides making your eyes blink regularly, the automatic control also works to close your eyelids when something is about to strike your face. So blinking is important in protecting your eyes.