Eye redness

If the whites of your eyes have more red lines than a road map, these are what you can do:

Water your eyes

If your red eyes are a result of not getting enough sleep, find a way to catch up on your rest. Closing your eyes for 7 to 8 hours helps to rehydrate them. Without sleep the eyes can dry out and dry eyes are red eyes.

Treat your eyelids

If your eyes are red when you wake up, the problem may not be in your eyes but on your eyelids. It is called blepharitis and it is a low grade infection of your eyelids. Just wash your eyelids with warm water at night before you go to bed.

Use drops sparingly

Drops designed to get the red out have an agent in them that works to constrict your blood vessels. They take the redness out by shrinking the blood vessels, however they wear off in a couple of hours and the redness comes back worse. Thus, use drops sparingly.

Crocodile tears

Redness that comes on during the day is caused by dryness. If that is the case, over the counter artificial tears can be used to moisten the eyes. Unlike normal eyedrops, they do not shrink blood vessels.

Cool it

Use a cool, wet washcloth and lay it over your closed eyes. The cold will constrict the blood vessels without the rebound effect while the water will add moisture to your eyes.

It is normal to see blood in the white of your eyes but it is not normal to see blood covering your pupil. See your doctor right away if you do. If your eyes hurt, your vision blurred or you have a pinkish haze, you need medical treatment urgently.