Shire and Jennifer Aniston Want to Inspire People to Show Their Eyes Some Love and Help Raise Awareness of Chronic Dry Eye

LEXINGTON, Massachusetts, August 25, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

Jennifer Aniston Opens Up about Personal Experience with Dry Eye Symptoms, Which Have Been Reported by Nearly 30 Million Americans 

Jennifer Aniston is one of the millions of Americans who experience symptoms consistent with Chronic Dry Eye. Commonly referred to as Dry Eye, Aniston has revealed how the condition gets in the way of her daily life. In partnership with Shire plc (LSE: SHP, NASDAQ: SHPG), Aniston is encouraging people to make eye health a priority, and is raising awareness and understanding about Chronic Dry Eye symptoms, like the ones she experiences. She hopes to educate and inspire people to chat with their eye doctor about what's really going on with their eyes.

"My eyes often become dry, itchy and irritated, especially when I am reading or outside," says Aniston. "The symptoms were bothering me so much that I finally decided to speak with my eye doctor, and learned I have Dry Eye." Getting Americans to talk about those Chronic Dry Eye symptoms is what inspired Shire to launch eyelove^TM, an educational awareness campaign inspired by the wonderful things we can do and see because of our eyes.

To get people to prioritize their eye health, eyelove will provide information that helps them recognize that symptoms may interrupt common activities like reading, driving or working at a computer. Through the eyelove campaign, Shire hopes that people will show their eyes some love, which may start by visiting their eye doctor to chat about Dry Eye symptoms that may be getting in the way of the things they love to do.

"Shire is thrilled to partner with Jennifer Aniston to help educate people about Dry Eye and the steps they can take to maintain and improve their eye health," said Robert Dempsey, Head, Ophthalmics franchise at Shire. "As a leading biotech company, we are passionate about making a meaningful and lasting difference in the lives of patients."

The eyelove Art Project  

To bring the eyelove experience to life, New York City will play host to the "eyelove art project" at the High Line on Friday, October 7 from 9AM - 6PM and Saturday, October 8 from 11AM - 7PM. Visitors will be invited to share their own personal eyelove before creating a unique artistic image of their eye via a customized photo capture. The photo will then be projected onto a large screen, showcasing each person's one-of-a-kind eyelove art. Participants have the option to share their eyelove art via social media channels. People can also visit http://www.myeyelove.com to create their own art.