![]() ![]() Try one-day or “daily” contact lenses.Since allergens (including pollen) often stick to a contact lens’s surface, it’s a best practice to minimize exposure in the eyes. If you get in bed with pollen on your body, and it transfers to your pillow, you’ll constantly re-expose yourself all night long! Here’s why: tiny pollen particles attach themselves to your skin and hair. When you come inside, change your clothes and wash your face or take a shower to minimize your pollen allergen exposure. If you do go outside, wear wraparound sunglasses to protect your eyes from being exposed. If pollen is your kryptonite, choose inside activities on high pollen days. In addition to the treatments recommended above, here are a few additional tips that might help minimize our allergic reaction this season:Īllergic to your neighbor’s cat or dog? Avoid petting him, and when you do come in contact with him, wash your hands thoroughly afterward. Allergy medications can have another effect, however: In some cases, antihistamines can result in symptoms of dry eye. You may need to start taking them up to a month before allergy season to maximize effectiveness. The same oral antihistamines that relieve runny noses and sneezing may also minimize your allergic conjunctivitis symptoms. One of our most creative patients uses a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a thin towel and says it works great! To make your own compress, fill a sealable plastic bag with ice cubes and wrap a thin towel around it, then apply to the eyes for 10 minutes. You can buy a ready-made cold compress to keep in your refrigerator. Cooler temperatures will help to shrink blood vessels and reduce blood flow and swelling to relieve your discomfort. ![]() Prescription drops may include steroids or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications to relieve your irritating symptoms.Ĭhanging the temperature of your eye area may give you relief from allergic conjunctivitis. While similar in function to many over-the-counter products, prescription eye drops are often more powerful and therefore more effective in providing relief. If that’s the case, discuss prescription eye drop options with your optometrist. Here’s a tip: For an added cooling effect on warm Spring days, store your eye drops in the refrigerator before use.ĭepending on your level of irritation, over-the-counter products may not provide sufficient relief from your symptoms. In addition, preservative-free artificial tear eye drops can help to soothe the discomfort of allergic conjunctivitis. Many of these eye drops have antihistamines or block your body’s mast cells to help reduce your body’s allergic reaction. There are a variety of over-the-counter allergy eye drops on the market that you can buy to find relief from red, swollen, or itchy allergy eyes. Let’s explore 6 options for treating this seasonal condition: If you’ve had them, you know how annoying and uncomfortable the condition can be. These include itchy, watery, swollen red and irritated eyes. In our previous post, we explored the symptoms of seasonal allergies that affect the eyes-what we call allergic conjunctivitis. ![]()
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