Your Eyes & Allergy Season

You can tell it is spring when there are beautiful flowers blooming.

Unfortunately with that for many people comes allergy season, and red, itchy eyes.  A majority of allergy symptoms affect the eyes.

Symptoms of Eye Allergies

These are signs you may be suffering from eye allergies:

– Swollen, red or itchy eyes

– Sneezing or coughing

– Runny nose

– Itchy nose, mouth or throat

– Headache from sinus congestion

– Fatigue or lack of sleep

Causes of Eye Allergies

– Airborne allergens like pollen, dust, pet dander and mold irritate the eyes.

– Some medications, cosmetics or topical creams can cause adverse reactions and eye allergies.

– Food allergies or reactions caused by insect stings do not usually affect the eyes like airborne allergens do.

Treatment & Help for Eye Allergies

Here are some tips to help those who suffer from allergies:

– Stay away from the allergens that bother you as much as possible.

– Keep your house extra clean.  Dust and pet hair can irritate your eyes further.  Keep pets off the furniture.

– Spend time inside.  Regularly change air filters in your home to make sure the air conditioning system can keep the air clean.

–  Wear sunglasses to protect your eyes from irritants when you are outside.

–  Keep the windows up in your car to keep pollen and other allergens from coming into contact with your eyes. Everyone likes fresh air, but it can really aggravate your eyes if you suffer from allergies.

– Sometimes it is hard to figure out exactly what allergen or allergens are causing problems for you.  In this case, avoidance is quite difficult, so you may need medication.

– Over-the-counter medications are cheaper and accessible.

– But, you may need something stronger, like prescription medication to treat your eye allergies.  Ask your eye doctor for recommendations.

– Deposits are less likely to occur on disposable contact lenses that you throw away after one day.  You can also ask your eye doctor if these might be a good fit for you, since they help many people who are allergy sufferers.

– Eye allergies can also sometimes be helped with eye drops that have active ingredients like antihistamines and decongestants.

Remember that if you have additional symptoms or your symptoms get severe, you should visit your eye doctor to make sure you aren’t suffering form something more serious.  Your eye doctor can determine what will work best based on your specific symptoms and allergies.

You can also check online at  The Weather Channel to monitor pollen levels and allergen types daily in your area.