Hay Fever and How It Can Affect Your Eyesight

Hay Fever affects people all over the world every year and has a startling effect on the eyes. If you aren’t familiar with Hay fever, it sounds much worse than it is. Hay fever is an allergy caused by pollen that essentially causes an itchy or running nose and watery eyes.

Now, these symptoms are quite mild compared to the ailment lists we’ve familiarized ourselves with in other situations. However, that doesn’t make them any less irritating! Hay fever is commonly known to disrupt days and eventually weaken the immune system by causing the body to spend so much time and energy battling the pollen or dust irritant.

Hay fever’s effect on the eyes gets especially annoying for contact and glasses wearers. Itchiness gets in the way of corrective eye wear, too much itching leads to soreness and sore eyes leave unattractive red eyes in their wake. This is no fun at all.

As the body fights the hay fever, the following more severe symptoms might occur:

• Disturbed sleep
• Decreased concentration
• Worse eye exam results

The best defense against hay fever is a good offense. Here are some tips on avoiding the pollen in the first place:

• Avoid being outdoors in the middle of the day during haying season
• Wear glasses! Your eyeglasses or sunglasses both help keep irritants out of the eye.
• Forget bangs or hair accessories that fall over your eyes. These only allow more opportunity for pollen to reach the eye!

Sometimes, prevention tactics aren’t enough and, the dust slips into our eyes and immune system. If that happens, here are some suggestions to remedy the situation:

• Lubricate with eye drops. Moisture will help fight the irritation. If you wear contacts or regular eye drops aren’t helping, ask a doctor for prescription eye drops for pain

• See a doctor for prescription drugs to combat the allergy

• Consult your GP or pharmacist on an over-the-counter antihistamines to reduce irritation

• Try nasal spray. If the hay fever is affecting one gland, it’s likely affecting another close by.

Don’t let hay fever get the best of you! It’s a pain to be proactive, but it’s much better than being in pain! If you have questions about eye allergies or eye health in general, feel free to contact Diamond Vision Atlanta.