Springtime is generally thought of as allergy season. And spring certainly does produce lots of allergy symptoms. But so does autumn.
One of these symptoms is dry eyes. In the fall, your eyes dry out from allergies and other seasonal causes.
Chronic dry eyes can lead to severe eye problems and may indicate an underlying issue. But even seasonal dry eyes can cause discomfort and hurt your eyes.
Keep reading to learn three tips to prevent dry eyes this autumn.
Dry eyes can result from external forces or internal factors. If your eyes are dry year-round and hard to relieve, you may have dry eye syndrome.
Dry eye syndrome usually occurs due to a malfunction in your tear production system. The two most common issues in tear production are a lack of tears or a lack of oil in your tears.
Tears have three main components, water, mucus, and oil. The water and mucus spread tears across your eyes and hydrate them.
The oil prevents the tears from evaporating. Without enough oil, your tears evaporate quickly. This situation results in excessive tearing and chronic dry eyes.
Chronic dry eye is not the most common form of dry, however. Environmental conditions are a more common cause.
The symptoms of environmental dry eyes come and go with the seasons or going in and out of arid environments.
In the fall, the most common causes of dry eyes are allergies and changing weather. Fall has environmental allergens, including mold, ragweed, and dust mites.
And as with all allergies, these irritants can cause dry eyes. The other common cause of increased dry eye symptoms in autumn is the changing weather.
As temperatures begin to drop, the air tends to get drier because it holds less moisture. Lower humidity causes drier eyes.
Also, the heat gets turned on in your house and office during the fall because of cooler air. Indoor heat is a significant cause of dry eyes through the fall, winter, and spring.
It sucks the moisture out of the air, which causes tears to evaporate. The changing of the seasons ultimately causes increased dry eye symptoms in the fall. Cooler air temperatures, allergens, and indoor heat lead to irritated and dry eyes.
You can combat the environmental changes that cause dry eyes. Use the following three tips to relieve dry eyes in the fall.
Humidifier
When the heat is on, it is drying the air in your house. Drier air leads to drier eyes because the humidity inside is lower.
Using a humidifier combats this drying effect. Using the heat is not an option, but that doesn’t mean you need to suffer dry eyes because of it.
Eye Drops
No matter what’s causing dry eyes, eye drops are the ultimate remedy. Whether you have chronic or seasonal dry eyes, eye drops provide rapid and lasting relief.
Use them preemptively before bed and upon awakening to keep your eyes well hydrated. And use them anytime you feel dryness and irritation beginning to bother you.
Allergy Medicine
Allergies are a leading cause of dry eyes. Preventing allergic reactions with medicine can reduce your dry eye symptoms.
But, if you do use daily allergy medication, be sure to use eye drops as well. Antihistamines, the active ingredient in many allergy medicines, also dry your eyes out.
So they reduce the allergic reaction but also decrease eye hydration. Use supplemental eye drops to combat the dehydrating effect of antihistamines.
Are your eyes chronically dry? Additional dry eye treatment may be necessary.
Schedule an appointment at Advanced Eye Care, SC in New Lenox, IL. See if prescription medicine or an in-office treatment can help you manage your dry eyes!
