How to Clear Red Eyes
Rest your eyes., Use eye-drops or artificial tears., Consider using an eye gel for extreme eye dryness., Take allergy medication., Try an eye rinse., Place a warm compress over your eyelids., Relax with cool, damp teabags over your eyes.
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Rest your eyes.
For most causes of red eyes — a corneal scratch, lack of sleep, eye strain from staring at a computer screen, too much sun exposure, long road trips — rest is the best medicine.
Get some extra sleep, and minimize your time looking at computers, TVs, books, and your phone.
Try listening to the radio or a book on tape instead.
Even if you can't take time off to give your eyes a whole day of rest, be sure to give them smaller breaks.
If reading or working at a computer, you should stop every fifteen minutes and stare at a distant object for at least 30 seconds.
This change in focal point will help to relax your eye muscles.
Every two hours, take a 15 minute break from your screen to rest your eyes.
Go for a walk, work out, have a snack, make phone calls — anything but staring at your computer screen or phone. -
Step 2: Use eye-drops or artificial tears.
For occasional eye redness, you can get relief by using eye drops, which are also sometimes called artificial tears.
These are available at any drugstore, and only cost a few dollars.
They lubricate and cleanse your eye, reducing redness and irritation.
They come in four types:
With preservatives — Preservatives like benzalkonium chloride, oliexetonium, polyhexamethylene biguanide, polyquad, purite, and sodium perborate (GenAqua)prevent bacteria from growing, but they also irritate your eyes.
If your eyes are sensitive or if you will be using the drops for an extended period of time, preservatives should be avoided.Without preservatives — Systane, GenTeal, Refresh, Thera Tears, and Bausch and Lomb, amongst others, all sell preservative-free eye drops.
For contacts — If you wear contacts, look for drops designed specifically for use with them.
Whitening / anti-red eye — Do not use whitening drops like Visine, Clear Eyes, and All Clear.
Whitening eye drops will actually exacerbate eye redness over time. , Gels and ointments are thicker and last longer than drops, but they can also blur your vision for a time.
That makes them best for use just before you go to sleep, so as to prevent your eyes from drying out overnight.
Be sure to use a hot compress or scrub your eyelids with mild soap before applying gels or lotions.
This will prevent them from clogging glands and ducts.Do not use gels or ointments if you have been diagnosed with meibomian gland disease., Seasonal allergies, pet allergies, or environmental allergies can all cause red eyes.
Allergies usually occur with other symptoms such as itchiness and tearing, and are typically worst in the morning.
The reason is twofold: first, sleeping in a home with allergens exposes you to their effects for a prolonged period of time, and second, seasonal allergies are worst in the morning when there is more pollen in the air.To deal with allergies:
Try an oral antihistamine, such as cetirizine (Zyrtec), desloratadine (Clarinex), fexofenadine (Allegra), Levocetirizine (Xyzal), or loratadine (Claritin).
Use medicated eye drops that contain antihistamine or anti-inflammatories, including azelastine (Optivar), emedastine (Emadine), ketotifen (Alaway, Zaditor), or olopatadine (Pataday, Patanol).
Keep your windows closed during allergy season to reduce your exposure to pollen.
Keep pets out of your bedroom, and especially out of your bed.
Try an air purifier to keep in your home, which may help reduce the presence of allergens. , An eye rinse helps to remove irritants in your eye that can contribute to redness.
In addition, it moisturizes and cools your eye.
You can rinse your eyes with lukewarm water by letting a stream run over your eye, using an eyecup, or standing in the shower and letting the water run into your eye (do not spray it directly into your eye).
For an even greater soothing effect, consider using a specially prepared eye rinse:
Boil a cup of distilled water.
Add a tablespoon of eyebright, chamomile flowers, or crushed fennel seeds.
Remove from heat, cover the pot, and let it steep for 30 minutes.
Strain the liquid into a sterilized container using a coffee filter.
You can keep the rinse in the refrigerator for up to 7 days. , Eyelid inflammation can block the flow of moisturizing oil to your eyes.
A warm compress can help to unblock your oil ducts.
Hold a clean, dry washcloth under warm running water until it is soaked and then wring out the excess water.
Then fold the washcloth in half and place it over your closed eyes.
Relax with the washcloth over your eyes for five to 10 minutes., Green tea and chamomile tea both contain chemicals that can soothe irritated skin, reduce inflammation, and open blocked oil ducts.
Steep two tea bags, then place them in the refrigerator or freezer until they are cool, before placing them over your closed eyes for five minutes. -
Step 3: Consider using an eye gel for extreme eye dryness.
-
Step 4: Take allergy medication.
-
Step 5: Try an eye rinse.
-
Step 6: Place a warm compress over your eyelids.
-
Step 7: Relax with cool
-
Step 8: damp teabags over your eyes.
Detailed Guide
For most causes of red eyes — a corneal scratch, lack of sleep, eye strain from staring at a computer screen, too much sun exposure, long road trips — rest is the best medicine.
Get some extra sleep, and minimize your time looking at computers, TVs, books, and your phone.
Try listening to the radio or a book on tape instead.
Even if you can't take time off to give your eyes a whole day of rest, be sure to give them smaller breaks.
If reading or working at a computer, you should stop every fifteen minutes and stare at a distant object for at least 30 seconds.
This change in focal point will help to relax your eye muscles.
Every two hours, take a 15 minute break from your screen to rest your eyes.
Go for a walk, work out, have a snack, make phone calls — anything but staring at your computer screen or phone.
For occasional eye redness, you can get relief by using eye drops, which are also sometimes called artificial tears.
These are available at any drugstore, and only cost a few dollars.
They lubricate and cleanse your eye, reducing redness and irritation.
They come in four types:
With preservatives — Preservatives like benzalkonium chloride, oliexetonium, polyhexamethylene biguanide, polyquad, purite, and sodium perborate (GenAqua)prevent bacteria from growing, but they also irritate your eyes.
If your eyes are sensitive or if you will be using the drops for an extended period of time, preservatives should be avoided.Without preservatives — Systane, GenTeal, Refresh, Thera Tears, and Bausch and Lomb, amongst others, all sell preservative-free eye drops.
For contacts — If you wear contacts, look for drops designed specifically for use with them.
Whitening / anti-red eye — Do not use whitening drops like Visine, Clear Eyes, and All Clear.
Whitening eye drops will actually exacerbate eye redness over time. , Gels and ointments are thicker and last longer than drops, but they can also blur your vision for a time.
That makes them best for use just before you go to sleep, so as to prevent your eyes from drying out overnight.
Be sure to use a hot compress or scrub your eyelids with mild soap before applying gels or lotions.
This will prevent them from clogging glands and ducts.Do not use gels or ointments if you have been diagnosed with meibomian gland disease., Seasonal allergies, pet allergies, or environmental allergies can all cause red eyes.
Allergies usually occur with other symptoms such as itchiness and tearing, and are typically worst in the morning.
The reason is twofold: first, sleeping in a home with allergens exposes you to their effects for a prolonged period of time, and second, seasonal allergies are worst in the morning when there is more pollen in the air.To deal with allergies:
Try an oral antihistamine, such as cetirizine (Zyrtec), desloratadine (Clarinex), fexofenadine (Allegra), Levocetirizine (Xyzal), or loratadine (Claritin).
Use medicated eye drops that contain antihistamine or anti-inflammatories, including azelastine (Optivar), emedastine (Emadine), ketotifen (Alaway, Zaditor), or olopatadine (Pataday, Patanol).
Keep your windows closed during allergy season to reduce your exposure to pollen.
Keep pets out of your bedroom, and especially out of your bed.
Try an air purifier to keep in your home, which may help reduce the presence of allergens. , An eye rinse helps to remove irritants in your eye that can contribute to redness.
In addition, it moisturizes and cools your eye.
You can rinse your eyes with lukewarm water by letting a stream run over your eye, using an eyecup, or standing in the shower and letting the water run into your eye (do not spray it directly into your eye).
For an even greater soothing effect, consider using a specially prepared eye rinse:
Boil a cup of distilled water.
Add a tablespoon of eyebright, chamomile flowers, or crushed fennel seeds.
Remove from heat, cover the pot, and let it steep for 30 minutes.
Strain the liquid into a sterilized container using a coffee filter.
You can keep the rinse in the refrigerator for up to 7 days. , Eyelid inflammation can block the flow of moisturizing oil to your eyes.
A warm compress can help to unblock your oil ducts.
Hold a clean, dry washcloth under warm running water until it is soaked and then wring out the excess water.
Then fold the washcloth in half and place it over your closed eyes.
Relax with the washcloth over your eyes for five to 10 minutes., Green tea and chamomile tea both contain chemicals that can soothe irritated skin, reduce inflammation, and open blocked oil ducts.
Steep two tea bags, then place them in the refrigerator or freezer until they are cool, before placing them over your closed eyes for five minutes.
About the Author
Nicholas Sullivan
A passionate writer with expertise in lifestyle topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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