So, what are the options to treat dry eye?

1. Eye Drops

Some benefits to using eye drops are:

• Eye drops offer moisture to your eyes
• Eye drops help to relieve dryness and irritation, promoting comfort.
• Eyes drops provide relief to burning, stinging and irritated eyes

2. Eye Lubricants aka Artificial Tears

Eye lubricants are essentially eye drops that help your tear film work more effectively. Lubricating eye drops, aka artificial tears,

• add moisture to the eyes to relieve dry eye discomfort
• keep the eye moist,
• help to protect the eye from injury and infection, and
• decrease symptoms of dry eyes such as burning, itching, and feeling as if something is in the eye.

Things to consider when choosing eye drops or artificial tears:

• Some people may find their eyes are easily irritated by preservatives, especially if they suffer from moderate to severe dry eye symptoms. Here, using eye drops that are preservative free is recommended
• There are many causes of dry eye and this can influence the type of eye drops needed to treat the condition. For example, if you suffer from allergies, an eye drop that contains an antihistamine would be recommended.
• Some people significantly overuse artificial tears eye drops, causing them to wash away their natural tears. Prolonged use and/or overuse can cause a dependency on the drops to soothe and moisturize the eyes, as well as protect delicate eye layers. Use OTC eye drops only as directed by the packaging or your doctor

Things to consider when using eye drops or artificial tears:

• Before using eye drops, it is important to wash your hands properly. This is to protect your eyes from any bacteria.
• Try to ensure the dropper does not get in contact with the eyes, lashes or eyelid.
• If there is a separate dropper and it touches the eye, do not use it again, throw it and buy a new one. If you insert that again into the bottle, the liquid will be contaminated.
• Never use anyone else’s ointment and if applying eye ointment to someone else, use gloves where possible.

3. Eyelid Wipes

Eyelid Wipes are made to gently clean away debris on the eyelid and eyelashes, such as crusting and stickiness, and to revive tired eyes. Ideal for use as part of a daily eye hygiene programme.

When you blink, you spread tear film over the surface of the eyes, moisturizing and nourishing them. This also protects them from foreign particles, eg. Dust.

Some benefits to choosing eyelids cleansing wipes are:

• Con­ve­nience – wipes are ready-to-use, with no addi­tion­al pads required
• Perfect for if you are on the go – easy to car­ry in your bag or pocket
• Also a cleans­ing treat­ment plan – when man­ag­ing inflam­ma­tion or infec­tion of the eye­lids

4. Heat pads

Heat pads for eyes mimic the benefits of using a warm compress to alleviate dry eye symptoms. Although they cannot cure dry eye, they can provide relief for the following dry eye conditions:

• Dry eye disease
• Inflamed eyes
• Blepharitis,
• Painful eyes,
• Sore eyes
• General eye irritations

By unblock­ing the mei­bo­mi­an glands, tear qual­i­ty is improved, which in turn has pos­i­tive ben­e­fits for eye health, vision and com­fort.

5. Eye Nutrition

As we age, we become more conscious of looking after our health. This includes looking after our eye health. Foods and their nutrients are key in improving not only our eye health but also our overall health. Vitamins C and E, zinc, lutein, zeaxanthin, and omega-3 fatty acids all play a role in eye health.

Specifically, omega-3s help soothe inflammation in your eyelids or on the surface of your eye. They may also help your tears do their job better. An omega-3-rich diet helps glands in your eye called meibomian glands make the oily part of your tears. The oil helps keep your tears from drying up too quickly in your eye.