How to Prevent Pink Eye

Spring-summer is notorious for pink eye outbreaks. Pink eye or Conjunctivitis is viral in nature and can easily spread from an affected individual to you, if you do not exercise caution. When you become infected with conjunctivitis, the transparent membrane that lines your eyelid and covers the whites of your eye becomes inflamed and red. While usually caused by bacteria/virus, an allergic reaction may also cause you to develop this condition. A pink eye does not harm your vision, but can be incredibly discomfiting. Early diagnosis and treatment is crucial to stem a pink eye contagion.

Common Symptoms

How can you tell if you’re coming down with Conjunctivitis? Here’s how –

• Your eyes are more watery than usual

· You are experiencing itchiness in one or both eyes

• You notice redness in one or both eyes

· Your eyes are leaking a discharge at night which makes it difficult for you to open them in the morning

· You are subject to grittiness of one or both eyes

If you identify that one or more of these symptoms are relevant for you, seek professional medical help immediately. Also, if you’re in the habit of wearing contact lenses, stop using them until your eyes feel better.

Kinds of Conjunctivitis

Conjunctivitis can be viral/bacterial in nature, allergic or even caused by a foreign object in your eye. Contact lens wearers need to be careful about keeping their lenses clean if they want to prevent pink eye.

Allergic conjunctivitis can be caused by allergy to substances such as pollen. You can use anti-allergy eyedrops to help you deal with the itchiness and inflammation of allergic conjunctivitis.

If a foreign object manages to enter your eye and does not go away even after you’ve tried to flush it out with water, it can cause pink eye.

How Can You Prevent Pink Eye

Pink eye can be prevented easily by practicing good hygiene habits, such as –

· Washing your hands clean often and thoroughly, especially before touching your eyes. Use a soap or hand sanitizer to disinfect your hand from any germs or bacteria that you might have gathered on them.

· Not sharing your towels, handkerchiefs or pillowcases with other people. They can carry conjunctivitis causing bacteria.

· Not using other people’s cosmetics, especially eyeliner or mascara.

· If you wear contact lenses, keeping your contact lenses and its case clean can really help. Changing your contact lenses as often as directed and using glasses if you detect any symptoms of pink eye forming is also a good idea.

· Refraining from rubbing your eyes often, if you are prone to allergies and feel your eyes becoming irritated.

· Not using swimming pools during a pink eye contagion

These are some of the ways in which you can keep conjunctivitis at bay. You can similarly not share your own towel, eye drops and bathware with other people to keep your infection from spreading to other people, if you have already fallen victim to pink eye.

At Phoenix Family Medical Clinic, we treat all kinds of eye and vision complaints. If you feel like you’re coming down with a pink eye and would need medical attention, call us/email us or simply walk in to our clinic. Our doctors will take good care of you.

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