As the hot summer season wears on, those of us who spend lots of time on the trails expect to feel radiant and robust, but instead can find ourselves with an uncomfortable situation developing – dry, red, stinging eyes. When I was living in Colorado, I’d typically start to feel some burning in my eyes in August and by September I looked like a Ring-Tailed Lemur. And let me tell you, it was extremely unpleasant.
There are lots of reasons you might be suffering from dry, red eyes, and it’s important to pay a visit to your health provider or an optometrist to find out what's behind it. But if you’re spending a lot of time outdoors, excessive sun exposure, cold, wind, dust and pollen are all likely culprits, whilst over exertion and fatigue might also be making matters worse. I know I wasn’t willing to give up hiking just because I looked and felt like I had conjunctivitis and had to lie in a cool dark room after every hike, but I realized I needed to do something. With a few changes and practices, I’m now able to hike all summer with much happier eyes.
