Suffering from Hayfever? How we can help.

Spring and summer can be a miserable time for Hayfever sufferers. Our new blog is all about the best solutions and a more comfortable summer.

“When summer arrives for most of us it is a time when we want to get outside in the fresh air as much as possible. But for some of us it can mean only one thing, hay fever! I know watching my young son suffer how unpleasant it can be. But what can we do? Other than the obvious stay indoors there are many other tips that can help.

• wear wraparound sunglasses to stop pollen getting into your eyes
• shower and change your clothes after you have been outside to wash pollen off
• keep windows and doors shut as much as possible
• vacuum regularly and dust with a damp cloth
• Don’t dry clothes outside where they can collect pollen

As for pharmacological treatments, oral antihistamines can help. They tend to work better if you are taking them on a regular basis rather than intermittently. You can also buy eyedrops over the counter to help with your eyes. Most of these contain a drug called sodium chromoglicate ( opticrom). They often can take a few days to start working effectively and you need to install 4 drops per day.

There are newer eyedrops now available such as opatanol. They have 2 main advantages. Firstly they tend to be faster acting, so relief from your symptoms is quicker. Secondly they only require 2 drops per day. So you can put them in morning and night. This means no need to be carrying round bottles of drops or sending your children to school with a note asking for a member of staff to put the drops in.

These drops are only available on prescription. As an independent prescribing optometrist I am able to prescribe drops such as these. All you need is an appointment for a private medical examination. I will them examine your or your child’s eyes and if necessary prescribe the appropriate drops.”

Nick Croft

BSc(hons)  MCOptom Dip Tp(IP)