Summer would soon be in its full glory and the rising temperatures would once again bring with them a plethora of summer ailments and allergies. For proper eye care in summers watch out for excessive sunlight, chlorine in swimming pools, contaminated water, dust and pollution. Allergies are by far the most common summer eye problem and are usually secondary to pollen, dust, wind and air pollutants and can vary from mild itching and redness of the eyes to severe watering and swelling of eyelids. Also take care of eyes from the most common infections that are seen with increased frequency in summers, like styes, viral conjunctivitis. Doctors say, unprotected exposure to the sun's ultraviolet (UV) rays can even increase the risk of developing cataract and damage to the retina. Here are simple things you can do to take care of your beautiful eyes..
1) If you wear UV protective contact lenses, you still need to wear a pair of sunglasses to protect the area of the eye including eyelashes that is not covered by the lens.
2) Look for sunglasses that offer good protection. Sunglasses should block out 99 to 100 per cent of both UVA and UVB radiation and screen out 75 to 90 per cent of visible light. Avoid buying local inexpensive shades that do not actually protect eyes.
3) Not many know that gray-colored lenses reduce light intensity without altering the color of objects, providing the most natural color vision.
4) Drink plenty of water throughout the day; it protects your eyes from puffiness and swelling.
5) While you are traveling, outdoor activities like camping may include chopping wood or cooking around a campfire. Use clear protective glasses. All too often flying embers can lead to severe eye burns.
6) When in a pool, do not forget your goggles. In summer, the incidence of skin infection in swimming pools rises and most pools increase the amount of chlorine or other chemicals to keep the water safe. This, however, leads to irritable eyes.
7) It is not only the skin that dries out in summer, eyes do too. Lubricating drops are ideal to avoid this. A slice of cucumber or potato does the trick for tired eyes.
8 ) Conjunctivitis is very common in summer, and its symptoms include redness of eyes, a pricking sensation, discharge and watery eyes. Immediately visit an eye specialist to avoid it from spreading further into the family.
9) Maintain good eye hygiene with repeated eye washing with clean and fresh water.
