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Posted on: 9 June 2015

When you suffer from pink eye, or conjunctivitis, the swelling, irritation, and discharge may become intolerable. Even if you are under the care of an optometrist, you may wonder if there is anything else you can do to soothe your symptoms. The following home remedy will help.

Ingredients And Supplies

Before you make your home pink eye treatment, gather the items listed below. You can find the ingredients in herbal shops, pharmacies, and some grocery stores.

• Shallow dish
• One tablespoon of warm distilled water
• One-half of a teaspoon of raw honey
• One-eighth of a teaspoon of salt
• Two quarter-inch cucumber slices

Distilled water is used in this home remedy instead of tap water because it does not contain chlorine and heavy metals that could irritate the eyes. Salt is added to the water to create a saline solution that closely matches the natural tears of the eyes.

Raw honey is used as an antibacterial. It also soothes any irritation on the eyelids and around the whites of the eyes. When selecting your honey, try to use an organic, locally-grown brand. It does not contain preservatives and chemicals like store-bought varieties.

The cucumber slices are used after they have been cooled in the refrigerator. They help reduce the inflammation and puffiness of the eyelids that is usually present with pink eye. 

Directions

Once you have everything you need, follow the directions below for making and using the home remedy. 

1. Pour the distilled water into the shallow dish and warm it in the microwave for 10 seconds.
2. Add the salt and honey, stirring them into the water until they are completely dissolved.
3. Place the cucumber slices in the solution for five minutes to absorb the liquid.
4. Put the slices in the refrigerator for half an hour to cool.
5. Lay your head back and place a cucumber slice on each eye. Even if you only have symptoms in one eye, using the treatment on both could help prevent the infected eye from contaminating the good one.
6. Keep the slices on your eyes for 15 minutes.
7. Remove the slices and throw them away.
8. Let your eyes air dry. Do not rub them with a towel to dry them because this could irritate the infected tissues.

Using the above treatment twice a day should decrease your symptoms and calm the irritation. However, if you notice your symptoms are getting worse, you may want to contact your optometrist to see if there are any other treatments they can prescribe you.

For more information, contact Anderson Family Vision Care or a similar location.