It’s summertime, which means sunshine, greenery, and for many people, terrible allergies. If you wear contact lenses, one of the most common—and miserable—side effects of allergy season is eye irritation. Edwin Y. Endo, OD & Associates, located in Aiea, Hawaii, specializes in ocular health, including eye exams, contact lenses, laser corrective surgery, and ocular prosthetics.

Here the optometrist offers a few tips for contact lens users to manage eye irritation during allergy season: 

• Wear Your Glasses: Switching over to your glasses can give you some much-needed relief during allergy season. Even though this isn’t the most convenient option, it’s often the most effective one.
• Keep Drops On Hand: Specialty drops work well for inflammation, red eyes, and irritation. Keep some on hand in case you start to get itchy or dry eyes, and make sure to find contact-friendly versions.
• Clean Contact Lenses Regularly: Clean your contact lenses each time you remove them—this will ensure that pollen and allergens don’t get stuck to them. This also helps to make them less irritating when you put them back in.
• Don’t Rub: It might be tempting to touch and rub itchy eyes, but try to avoid this as much as possible. This could make the irritation even worse and make your allergic reaction more severe if your hands are unclean.
• Stay Clean: Keeping clean is another important factor to minimize allergies. Try and keep your clothes clean and wash your hands frequently. This will help to minimize allergens on your person that could get into your eyes.

Taking steps to reduce eye irritation can help make your allergy season more tolerable. If you live in Aiea, contact the best optometrist on the island—Edwin Y. Endo, OD & Associates. If you have persistent eye irritation, need an eye exam, or want to be fitted for contact lenses, call (808) 487-5500 to schedule an appointment. To learn more about the eye doctor and his services, you can also visit the Edwin Y. Endo, OD & Associates website.