Huffingtonpost iconHuffingtonpostSep 4, 2026 ~1 min source read

Why Do We Cry? The 3 Types Of Tears And How Their Chemical Compositions Differ

Close up portrait of grieving, crying women in her 50's with eyes closed looking down and hand on chin against blue background I bloody love a good cry. If there are strong emotions happening, you can guarantee that I will be in tears at one point or another.

Why Do We Cry? The 3 Types Of Tears And How Their Chemical Compositions Differ

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Close up portrait of grieving, crying women in her 50's with eyes closed looking down and hand on chin against blue background I bloody love a good cry.

Despite us Brits having a reputation for a 'stiff upper lip', according to YouGov survey data, we're a teary nation and 51% of us think it's acceptable to cry at work.

If there are strong emotions happening, you can guarantee that I will be in tears at one point or another.

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The useful part

Close up portrait of grieving, crying women in her 50's with eyes closed looking down and hand on chin against blue background I bloody love a good cry. If there are strong emotions happening, you can guarantee that I will be in tears at one point or another. Despite us Brits having a reputation for a 'stiff upper lip', according to YouGov survey data, we're a teary nation and 51% of us think it's acceptable to cry at work.

How it works

  • In fact, depending on the cause, our tears are made up of different chemical compositions.

What to take from it

I always thought that my love for crying was because I'm incredibly sensitive and constantly looking for an outlet and maybe that is a part of it but, actually, crying or just producing tears often has a biological purpose beyond letting emotions out.

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Different types of tears and their purposes Emotional tears These ar...

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