You wake up in the morning with eyelids sticking together or the eyes turned red, itchy and swollen. You have got conjunctivitis or a condition called pink eye. It could be due to viral/bacterial infection or allergic reactions to pollen, dander, smoke, fumes,chemicals or any other allergens.
The lining of the eyes is usually clear. Irritation or infections can swell the mucus membrane that lines the eyelid and eye surface causing redness.
You don't have to be too worried, as Pink eye is not a very serious condition. It can heal itself within a week or ten days, but since most instances of pink eye are contagious, you need to take quick actions. You can use different Home remedies for fast relief from pink eye. Many of them are listed below
Since bacterial and viral conjunctivitis is contagious; its spread must be curtailed. Allergic pink eye is dealt with differently.
Precautions to Stop the Spread of Pink Eye
Sharing washcloth or a towel can spread pink eye condition to others. Following precautions can stop the spread of conjunctivitis:
- Make sure that the person with conjunctivitis wears dark glasses to avoid direct eye contact exposure to other people.
- Don’t share any towels or washcloths with the infected person. Avoid handshakes and if possible don’t sit next to an infected person.
- Keep a safe distance from the affected person. Sitting in the same car significantly increases the chances of infection as the closed sitting area of the car is confined. Keep the windows open if you have to sit in the same car.
- Wash your hands frequently if you are meeting many people regularly. This will reduce the probability to catch conjunctivitis.
- Surface clean common things of uses such as home telephone equipment, steering wheel of car, door handles etc.
- Maintain all types of personal hygiene particularly if one of your eyes has got infected. The other eye needs to be protected.
Bacterial conjunctivitis requires medical attention as untreated conjunctivitis can lead to serious eye problems such as corneal ulcer.
Viral and allergic conjunctivitis usually take their due course of time to heal. You can do a lot to reduce suffering and expedite the healing process. The following 5 natural home remedies can help you to a great extent reduce you pain and discomfort of the pink eye.
1. Chamomile or Fennel Tea
Use these herbal tea poultices as warm compress for your swollen pink eyes.
- Put a chamomile/fennel tea bag in a cup of mild warm water for 2-3 minutes.
- Remove the teabag from the cup by squeezing it. The teabag should be moist warm but the water should not be dripping.
- Apply the warm tea bag on the swollen eye.
- Use the remaining warm tea water to rinse your eye.
If you are allergic to ragweed, then this is not for you. The allergic reaction to chamomile/ fennel may not be helpful even if it doesn’t worsen the condition.
2. Honey
Honey’s therapeutic value has been recognized in treating many different conditions. One of it is, its antibacterial ability. Some studies done on Dry eyes revealed that the traces of bacteria disappear and the eye becomes normal after the use of honey.
Any locally made honey should be ok. If you can get Manuka honey then it is certainly better. High concentration of a compound dihydroxyacetone in manuka honey does the job of antibacterial agent.
- Take 50 ml of water (approximately one fourth of a cup) and add ¼ teaspoon of honey. Stir and mix it well.
- Make sure that the water is not too warm. It should be warm enough to be comfortable to the eye. Water should be pure without any impurities.
- Boil the water and let it cool.
- Strain it and use it when the temperature reaches acceptable levels.
- Rinse your swollen pink eye with it.
3. Organic Yogurt
Plain organic yogurt is a good probiotic treatment for pink eye. It is the live culture in the yogurt that does a good job of good bacteria killing the bad bacteria. You can see a fine thin liquid layer on the yogurt. Tilt your yogurt pot to pour the liquid in a crucible. Use a dropper to put two drops of the liquid yogurt to your eyes.
If you can't get the top layer liquid, don't fret. You can follow the method described below.
- Take of teaspoon and scoop a small amount of yogurt ( 1/10th of a teaspoon).
- Add a few drops of pure normal temperature water (boiled first and then cooled water).
- Mix it well to make it liquid. Use a dropper to put two drops in the swollen eye.
- Do it 3 times a day.
4. Boric Acid
Boric acid is generally used on burns as it is an antibacterial compound. It is used for any other treatments including acne and ear infections. Most households usually have a stock of boric acid powder at home. If not you can get it easily at any pharmacy.
- Add boric acid in pure ware to make a solution.
- Put a couple of drops of the solution in your pink eye with the help of a dropper.
You can also use boric acid water solution as an eyewash.
5. Vitamin A
If you are getting conjunctivitis frequently, then it is a sign of low vitamin A. You can take Vitamin A supplement or Eat foods rich in Vitamin A. Carrots, Sweet potatoes, Dark leafy greens, Bell peppers and Cantaloupe are the most common fruit and vegetables rich in Vitamin A. Other foods such as all dark leafy green vegetables (Spinach and Kale) are also a good source of vitamin A.
Make your choice and eat more of these foods daily to increase your immunity by increasing Vitamin A intake.
Allergic pink eye requires a different treatment, but you can use some of the above remedies as eye wash in such cases. In case of allergic pink eye, normally both eyes are affected simultaneously. The immediate action you need to take is to remove the source of the allergy. You can then use warm compress on both of your pink eyes to get immediate relief.
Using Boric acid solution as eye wash also will help.
So if your one eye has become a pink eye then the chances are you have a viral or bacterial infection, but if both the eyes are affected you are most likely a victim of an allergic reaction. Treat the eyes accordingly. Bacterial pink eye generally requires medical attention.