How To Open A Bottle of Champagne: New Year's Eve Tip

If you’re like millions of Americans, you’re probably going to be uncorking a bottle of bubbly this New Year’s Eve.

It’s the uncorking, however, that can potentially poke your eye out and possibly cause blindness, the American Academy of Ophthalmology warns.

Improper cork removal can cause serious, potentially blinding injuries, including rupture of the eye wall, retinal detachment, bleeding, dislocation of the lens and damage to the eye’s bone structure.

Champagne bottles contain pressure as high as 90 pounds per square inch, more than the pressure found inside a typical car tire, the American Academy of Ophthalmology said. This pressure can cause a champagne cork to shoot at 50 miles per hour as it leaves the bottle—fast enough to shatter glass. It is also fast enough to permanently damage vision.

To learn the correct the technique for opening a bottle of champagne, watch this demonstration video.

If you do experience an eye injury from a champagne cork, seek immediate medical attention from an ophthalmologist – an eye physician and surgeon. For more information about keeping eyes healthy during holiday celebrations and all year round, visit www.geteyesmart.org.

Source: American Academy of Ophthalmologists