How to Protect Your Eyes In Winter

All Minnesotans know that winter can put the body under stress, but have you ever thought about winter’s effects on your eyes?


Eyes can be easily irritated by the fluctuation between brutally cold winter winds outside and the dry heat indoors. These irritations can be broken down into four conditions that are experienced during the winter season:

1. Runny, Wet Eyes

When your eyes attempt to compensate for the dry winds and heat, often they overcompensate and you get watery eyes that produce excessive tears.

To combat this, wearing sunglasses outdoors can protect your eyes from the wind. In addition, be aware of how you are wiping tears from your eyes. You may be irritating your eyes more if you are wiping them with unclean hands or rubbing your eyes vigorously.

2. Dry Eyes

On the opposite end of the spectrum, if your eyes do not produce enough tears, they are dried out by the winds and dry air.

What can you do to help? Here are a few options:

• Give Dr. Tom a ring to chat about the use of prescription eye drops
• Sunglasses will once again help your eyes fight the dryness
• Buy a humidifier for your home or office to add moisture to the air that typically dries out your eyes
• Take Omega-3 supplements to increase tear production
• Drink plenty of water
• Track your medications as some may restrict your ability to create tears. These include antihistamines, sleeping pills, pain relievers, and others.

3. Swollen Eyes

Red, swollen eyes can be caused by compression of the blood vessels in tissues around the eyes. This condition can cause overproduction of tears, blurry vision, and eyelid spasms.

Sunglasses can once again reduce this issue. The UV light reflected on the snow can increase inflammation of the cornea; sunglasses will reduce the UV light’s effects.

4. Burning Eyes

Not only can the cornea become inflamed by winter winds; it can also freeze. Do not force your eyes to open in the wind or cold as these conditions can have damaging effects to your cornea.

If you are experiencing this condition, please call Dr. Tom. He can help find a solution to your eye pain and burning. A temporary fix in the meantime is once again to put on those sunglasses. They will protect your eyes from some of these wind chill effects.

You may have noticed a trend in this article – sunglasses aren’t just for the summer! If you were planning on waiting to get a new pair prescription sunglasses, you might want to rethink that decision. We have many stylish options available at Infinite Eye Care.

Whatever your eye troubles, give Dr. Tom and our team at Infinite Eye Care a call. We can set you up so you’re not suffering through the winter season.

Spectacles of the Past: The History of Eyeglasses

Have you ever wondered when the first eyeglasses were invented? What did the eyeglasses of the past look like?

A brief history of eyeglasses and how their styles have changed through the years is an interesting - though sometimes blurry - look at times gone past.

Early Eye Glass Inventions

The first efforts to correct blurry vision were especially crude; think a large glass bowl filled with water. The first magnifying glass, invented in Venice around 1000 C.E., was the true start to corrected vision. These “reading stones” became friends of aging monks and medieval detectives.

The first pair glasses were simply two magnifying glasses connected by a hinge and balanced on the nose, invented in Italy somewhere between 1285-1289. Early versions of glasses would also sometimes be held up by a handle.

During the next couple centuries, eyeglasses continued to rise in popularity and demand.

Advancements and Breakthroughs

A large breakthrough came in the 1500's when crafters fashioned a concave lens to correct the vision of the nearsighted Pope. Now lenses could cure both nearsighted and farsighted problems.

In the 1700's, the idea emerged to anchor eyeglasses to the ears so they would stay in place. The late 1700's also brought the invention of bifocals, though it wasn’t until the 1800's that glasses evolved to correct astigmatism. Monocles and trifocals followed in the late 1800's and early 1900's.


The multitude of styles on the market today proves the diversity and popularity of eyeglasses. While traditionally the best frames were made in Germany and the best lenses made in Italy, manufacturers from all over the world now understand how to produce high-quality glasses.

We can use eyeglasses to correct almost every vision problem. Understanding the history of eyeglasses and how they have changed over time helps us to appreciate how far we have come.

Pumpkins: The Superfood For Your Eyes

A few things distinguish fall from the other seasons: the color of the leaves, the brisk

This fall, don’t just carve your pumpkins for Halloween or serve pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving, incorporate pumpkin into your regular diet. Pumpkins are a superfood for your eyes, providing copious amounts of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and other antioxidants. Here is a deeper look into the benefits eating pumpkin can have for your eyes.

Preventing Macular Degeneration

Macular degeneration is a major cause of adult-onset blindness. A study by the National Eye Institute found that the Vitamin A and Vitamin C in pumpkin work together to significantly reduce the risk of developing advanced macular degeneration.

Sharper Eyesight

Pumpkins are high in zinc, essential to the overall health of your eyes. According to sweye.com, “Zinc not only enables vitamin A to navigate from the liver to the retina to form melanin (an eye-protecting pigment), it also slows progression of age-related macular degeneration, and helps to reduce the loss of visual sharpness by 19%.”

Filter Damaging Light

Almost like sunscreen for your eyes, the antioxidants in pumpkins shield you from harmful high-energy light wavelengths. In particular, lutein and zeaxanthin are to thank for protecting you from eye damage!

Decreases Risk of Cataracts

Cataracts are the most common cause of vision loss in adults over 40 years old and the biggest cause of blindness around the world. The power of Vitamin C in pumpkin also reduces the risk of cataracts, a leading cause of adult-onset blindness.

See Better In Low Light

The Vitamin A found in pumpkins helps our eyes see better in low light. It works to protect the cornea, the surface of the eye, and it is consumed by the retina in the form of retinal.


As if you didn't have enough reasons to love pumpkins already, the fact that they are a superfood for your eyes should put it over the top! This season, do not throw away any pumpkins from your front porch; cook them up, eat them, and your eyes will thank you!

Infinite Eye Care Gives Back—From Infants to Roller Derby

At Infinite Eye Care, we are dedicated to improving the lives of our customers and our community, whether that’s by giving the best care for your family’s eyes or by making an impact in the world around us. Here are some of the ways we are involved in our local and broader community.

Strides Against Breast Cancer

The “Infinite Pink” team will be participating in the American Cancer Society’s Making Strides of Central Minnesota walk. Our goal is to raise $1,500 to support the fight against breast cancer, and we need your help! You can join the team and walk with us on October 14th, or make a donation. A $20 donation gets you an “Infinite Pink” t-shirt!

InfantSEE

Infinite Eye Care is proud to offer free InfantSEE assessments for children ages 6 months to 1 year. These evaluations are recommended in addition to your child’s eye exam done by your pediatrician. 1 in every 10 children is at risk from undiagnosed eye and vision problems. The InfantSEE session may include assessing eye movement ability, eye health, and excessive or unequal amounts of nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism, allowing for earlier identification and treatment of these issues.

Back to School Screenings

Dr. Tom and other volunteers have recently helped screen approximately 800 kids in area school districts. It was found that over 35% of the kids needed referral for further assessment by local eye care providers. Of them, about 50% are not currently wearing any corrective lenses and have probably not been to see an eye care professional.

Identifying when children need further assessment can be a major benefit to parents, and we’re happy to help our local students in this way.

Reading Bug Program

Infinite Eye Care wants to encourage young readers to keep up their interest in books throughout the summer months. Whether children are reading on their own or enjoy books read to them (through our “Read to Me, Please” Program), the Reading Bug Program encourages kids to sign up to win prizes as they reach the goal of 10-15 books through the summer!

SCAR Dolls Sponsor

There is nothing quite like the speed and tenacity of our local Roller Derby team, the Saint Cloud Area Roller Dolls. Infinite Eye Care is proud to sponsor this local team of athletes.

Eyeglasses Recycling

We are proud to support the Minnesota Lions Club Eyeglass Recycling Initiative, and we are a collection site for used glasses. Don’t throw them away; recycling them at our location!


We believe that meaningful relationships don’t just apply to the patients walking through our doors, but that we are part of something bigger. We hope you will be a part of some of our philanthropic initiatives in the local community!

No More Tears: Easy Tips to Prevent Pink Eye

School is right around the corner, and so are the germs and sicknesses that come with it. Of them all, conjunctivitis - or pink eye - can be the most irritating and hard to diagnose. It’s also one of the most common infectious diseases in school-age children. To make it easier on you this school year, here are a few tips to teach your kids to keep this itchy infection out of your home:

Stay Clean

The first rule of preventing sickness is to teach your children the importance of staying clean – especially their hands and eyes. Teach them to cover their mouth when they sneeze or cough and to avoid touching their eyes afterward. Another thing to help with the prevention of pink eye is changing pillowcases. Pillowcases can carry infectious germs that have easy access to your children’s eyes as they sleep. Keeping a clean and sanitary environment not only helps health overall but also is a big attribute to preventing pink eye.

Be Selfish

It may be hard to hush your inner Minnesota nice, but it’s a necessity when preventing pink eye. Sharing things such as wash clothes, linens, eye makeup, and tissues can cause pink eye and other infections in the eyes. Encourage your children to keep these types of items to themselves and not to accept them from other children.

The number one thing to never share on any occasion is contact lenses or the accessories that go with them. They can carry contagious infections and cause irritating symptoms.

Be a Homebody

This tip is only necessary if you, your child, or someone close to you has pink eye. A crucial thing in preventing it from spreading to others is to stay home during the contagious stage. Pink eye is easily contracted with close contact, which is why it’s so prevalent in teachers and students who are consistently in close contact with others. One should wait until the discharge and redness is gone from the eye before going back to work/school/daily life routine.


Pink eye can be irritating, disgusting, and even unbearable for some. Hopefully, these tips will provide you and your family with the necessary knowledge you need to prevent pink eye – or if you already have contracted it, the knowledge to not spread it. If you think you have pink eye, the most important step to take is to visit the eye doctor and get diagnosed. Catching pink eye soon after you are infected and starting the medicine you will need to get rid of it will drastically lessen your symptoms and shorten your recovery time. Infinite Eye Care offers an urgent care and pink eye service just for that reason.

Visit our website to learn more.

Amazing Eyes of the Animal Kingdom

Think human eyes are amazing? What if you could see at a 330-degree angle instead of an 185-degree angle? Or what if you had hundreds of microscopic six-sided lenses to see in all directions simultaneously? Animal eyes are amazing and full of wonder. From barnyard animals to extraordinary reptiles, there are many interesting eyes to explore. Here are just a few to spark your fascination with the animal eyes of our world.

1. Goats

Although they might seem ordinary, goats are actually quite unique. Many notice their eyes upon first glance but there is much more than just the interesting look of them. In fact, their eyes can see at a 330 degree angle which is almost twice as much as a human at 185 degrees. The large size of their pupils also give them fantastic night vision.

2. Mantis Shrimp

This unusual and very tiny sea inhabitant is quite miraculous in the world of vision. Not only can their eyes move independently and rotate at a 70-degree angle, but they also have the most complex eyes in the entire world. While humans only have 3 color receptors, this little crustacean has 12. As well as having a colorful outlook on life, the Mantis Shrimp can also detect ultraviolet, infrared, and polarized light using it’s amazing sense of sight!

3. Hippopotamus

These cows of the sea are actually fascinating in the world of eyesight. When underwater, they have clear vision and need not worry about getting a single piece of floating debris in their eyes. They are equipped with a clear layer of membrane that protects their vision while they prowl the underwater world.

4.Tarsier

Imagine if you had eyes the size of grapefruits! This small primate has eyes that are each approximately the same size as its brain. They have the largest eyes of any mammal relative to its body. Much like owls, they aren’t able to move their eyes at all. To make up for this disadvantage, their heads are able to move 180 degrees in each direction!

5. Butterfly

Seeing the invisible is a cool superhero-like trait that all butterflies have. To find those delicious nectar-filled flowers, butterflies are able to see ultraviolet light which is undetectable by the human eye. Like most insects, butterflies also have compound eyes made up of six-sided lenses making it possible to see in every direction simultaneously.

6. Chameleon

Chameleons have some of the most unique eyes in the entire animal kingdom. Their eyes are so unbelievable that they can move independently, making it possible for the chameleon to have a 360-degree field of vision. Another interesting aspect of the eyes of a chameleon is the eyelids. The eyelids are cone-like and cover every part of the eye except for the pupil.

7. Gharial

Practically a living and breathing fossil and a member of the crocodile family, the Gharial is last on our list of interesting animal eyes. The Gharial has some of the most advanced eyes on the planet. Their head is shaped in the way that they can have almost every inch of their body submerged in water, while their eyes are left out of the water to search for prey. They also have spectacular night vision. Their eyes have a thin, mirror-like structure that helps reflect light not already absorbed by the eye back into it a second time. Not only is this feature cool, it’s also kind of creepy as it gives this crocodile glowing eyes when a light shines on them.



Although these eyes are fascinating and exquisite don’t forget about our own! With two million working parts and the ability to heal itself in 48 hours, the eyes we have are unique and interesting in themselves. So don’t forget to keep your eyes happy and healthy!

New Children’s Books To Get Your Kids Excited About Reading

Looking for activities for your kids this summer? Why not reading? Infinite Eye Care’s Reading Bug Program is just underway! Kids of all ages can participate and win great prizes to encourage them to read this summer. It continues all summer until August 18th, so come on in and sign up. It’s a great way to encourage your kids to read this summer.

Numerous studies show that kids who do not read or read a small amount during the summer have reading abilities that decline or plateau. This can have an extremely negative effect on a child’s education when they get older and have more advanced schooling.

With all the fun activities going on that threaten to take away from your child’s desire to read, it can be hard to find books that will pique their interest. A list of new children’s books from commonsensemedia.com may help you inspire your child to read. Below are our favorite picks from the list.

The Magic Hat Shop by Sonja Wimmer

This book tells the story of a magical hat shop that suddenly appears in the middle of a town, transforming the lives of the people around it. Upon wearing a hat from the shop, a person finds their best self.

Grand Canyon by Jason Chin

This highly educational book is about a father and daughter visiting the Grand Canyon. It features historical facts about the park, as well as explaining the geological process. If your little one is an outdoor enthusiast, this book is a great pick.

This Is How We Do It: One Day in the Lives of Seven Kids from Around the World by Matt Lamothe

This culturally rich book goes through the lives of seven different children who live around the globe. It explains a normal day for each child and gives the reader numerous cultural differences and national flavors.

Dad and the Dinosaur

This is a great story about a boy and his stuffed dinosaur. The boy feels brave and courageous when with his dinosaur, but then one day he loses it and becomes fearful and shy. His father helps him find it and along the way they conquer his fear together.

I am (Not) Scared by Anna Kang

In this cute picture book for young children, two bears conquer the fear of going on a rollercoaster together and have a great time. This book is light, funny, and relatable.

Hank the Cowdog Series by John R. Erickson

A book about a dog who lives on a ranch who finds himself in trouble quite frequently. This is a fun light read for kids 7 and up featuring lots of humor and drama.

Fish Girl by Donna Jo Napoli

This short novel depicts a mermaid's life in captivity, and her attempt to escape. Explained as a “Gorgeous Graphic Novel”, this book is great for young readers 10 and up.


Getting your child to advance their reading skills is very important, and hopefully, these new recommendations will help motivate them! There are an infinite amount of other interesting books to read as well that will help your child get on the right path to achieving the Reading Bug Program goals and winning great prizes! If you have any other suggestions for parents looking for great books their child can read, comment below!

How Lyme Disease Can Be Dangerous for Your Sight

May is known for many things: flowers, warmer weather, the end of school terms, but a lesser known May celebration is Lyme Disease Awareness Month. This tick-borne disease causes many complications throughout the body, including problems with the eyes. Lyme disease is a spiral-shaped bacteria, and depending on where they grow, different eye problems can occur. Luckily, eye complications don’t always occur with Lyme disease and treatment is possible for the disease and any problems it may cause your eyes. Here are the most common symptoms that Lyme Disease can have on your sight:

• Sensitivity to Light

A common effect of Lyme disease is sensitivity to light, even on cloudy days or at night.

• Cloudy or Foggy Vision

Sometimes those with Lyme disease with find their vision to be cloudy, especially as the bacteria are being killed off and giving off endotoxins. This often occurs after a person wakes up.

• Conjunctivitis

Commonly called pink eye, conjunctivitis causes eyes to be red and itchy, and to produce discharge. Unlike common pink eye, this is not contagious. This usually occurs in the early phase of Lyme disease.

• Uveitis, or Inflammation of the Middle of the Eye

The uvea includes the iris (the colored part of the eye), the ciliary body (which makes the fluid that fills the eye), and the area beneath the retina. Inflammation of the uvea can cause floaters in a person’s vision, which appear as dots or lines that float around in someone’s vision. Uveitis can be treated by eye care pros like Infinite Eye Care.

• Optic Neuritis, or Inflammation of the Optic Nerve

Optic Neuritis is the inflammation of the fibers covering the optic nerve. Since this is the channel of communication to the brain, this can be painful and cause vision loss, but is also treatable.

• Keratitis, or Inflammation of the Cornea

The cornea is the transparent protective outer layer of the eye. Inflammation of the cornea leads to light sensitivity, eye pain, and blurry vision. Eyes with keratitis can even have the appearance of being cloudy.


If you have been diagnosed with Lyme disease or have questions about any of these symptoms, please contact us immediately at (320) 257-4990. We can help treat any eye problems, whether they’ve been caused by this disease or not. Visit Livestrong.com for more information on ocular signs of Lyme disease.

How to Prevent Lyme Disease

Lyme disease is spread by the bite of an infected tick. While not all ticks carry this disease, lyme disease prevention starts with preventing the bite, so follow these steps to keep the ticks away altogether:

• Cover your legs, ankles, feet, head, and arms if you plan on hiking, being in tall grasses, or in the woods
• Always check your skin (and your children or pets) for ticks, which can be very small—poppy seed size—this early in the summer. Don’t forget in between the toes and in the hair! 
• Wear insect repellant to keep ticks and other bugs away
• If you have found a tick on you, remove it properly, and keep watch for fever or rash

Summer is just about here. Although it may attract some unwanted pests, you won’t want to miss a second of it! If you are having troubles with your vision - whatever the reason may be - make an appointment with Dr. Tom and the caring staff at Infinite Eye Care.

Prevent Springtime Allergies by Purifying the Air in Your House

Spring is a refreshing time of the year, but for allergy sufferers, it also causes a lot of discomfort. Even when you are indoors, it is hard to escape the itchy, watery eyes, nasal congestion, and other symptoms that come along with allergens such as dust mites, mold, and pet dander.

Fortunately, there are a few steps you can take to purify the air in your home and reduce allergens. Add these simple tasks to your spring cleaning list to purify your air for a more comfortable home.

Remove Clutter

The fewer items you have in a home, the fewer places there are for allergens to build up. Allergens tend to collect on the surfaces of items around your home, so limit the number of items you have to only what is necessary. This will also make the rest of your cleaning tasks easier to complete.

Dust Correctly

According to everydayhealth.com, the most common trigger of asthma and allergy symptoms in the home are dust mites. Dusting helps to remove dust mites, but only if done correctly. Traditional feather dusters often make allergy symptoms worse by dispersing dust particles into the air. Instead, try using a damp cloth or rag that will attract dust particles into the cleaning surface. You can also wear a dust mask while dusting if your allergy symptoms continue.

Vacuum and Clean Floors

Allergens don’t only collect on your furniture and decor, they also accumulate on your floors. Whether they are hardwood, carpeted, or tiled, your floors are likely collecting dust mites that can aggravate your allergy symptoms. Clean your floors often – especially by vacuuming carpets – to remove built-up dust mites hiding in the surface of your floors.

Wash Fabrics

Porous materials like cloth and fabrics can store dust more easily than other surfaces, so washing your clothes, bedding, and curtains can make a huge difference in your home’s air quality. Wash these items regularly to improve your allergy symptoms.

Humidity Control

According to National Allergy, 70-75% of a home dust mite’s weight is water, meaning that the humidity in your house has a direct impact on the dust in your home. Using a dehumidifier during the spring can limit the dust particles in your home. Be sure to clean and empty your home’s dehumidifier often to keep it running properly.

Air Filtration 

Finally, having the proper air filtration system in your home will be an easy solution to improving your home’s air quality. Be certain that your home’s air conditioning system is using HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filters to remove the most airborne allergens possible. This will be the simplest and one of the most effective ways of minimizing your allergy symptoms.


Removing the source of your allergies (a.k.a. Antigens) will often help. However, sometimes a little help is needed. When that time comes and the symptoms persist, call Infinite Eye Care for an allergy evaluation consult. You and your eyes will be glad you did.

The True Colors of Color Blindness

With spring quickly approaching, many people are eagerly awaiting the chance to see the colors of outdoor life to return. Green grasses, red flowers, and blue skies are on the horizon, however, some people may see these sights quite differently.

What is Color Blindness?

Color Vision Deficiency (CVD), more commonly referred to as color blindness, is a condition that affects the ability for a person to perceive different colors (typically red, green, and blue light). According to Colourblindawareness.org, it affects about 8% of men and .5% of women across the world, meaning that in the US, approximately 25.5 million men and 1.5 million women experience some form of color blindness.

How Does One Become Color Blind?

Color blindness is typically a genetic condition. According to the National Eye Institute, the mutated genes that cause the most likely form of color blindness are contained on the X chromosome, which explains why men are much more likely to be colorblind. Men have only one X chromosome while women have two. For a woman to be colorblind, both of her X chromosomes must be affected. If at least one of them contain an unmutated gene, she will not be colorblind. However, that woman would still be a carrier of the mutated gene, which she can pass down to her offspring.

Why Does Color Blindness Happen?

An article on Allaboutvision.com states that color blindness occurs in the retina of the eye, which is a layer located at the back of the eye that is sensitive to light and sends impulses of this information from the optic nerve to the brain, which forms the image that we see. In color blind people, the retina fails to respond to variations in wavelengths that allow people to distinguish colors.

At a smaller level, the retina’s cones are responsible for recording color vision. A healthy human retina contains 6 to 7 million cones. In genetic forms of color blindness, certain types of cones are deficient or absent completely, making the retina unable to perceive particular colors.

Color blindness can also occur for a number of other reasons, including a number of diseases and eye conditions, such as cataracts.

How Do Color Blind People See Colors?

For people who can see all colors accurately, it can be hard to understand how people who are affected by color blindness see the world around them. Fortunately, there are resources that allow people to better understand how color blindness affects people. Visit webexhibits.org for a color blindness simulation that covers all color blindness scenarios.

As we said, some color blind people were not born that way, it was a result of an issue with their eyesight - yet another reason to stay up-to-date with all your vision exams. So if you see the world in full color, Keep it that way with an annual trip to Infinite Eye Care.

Finding the Perfect Fit for Your Frames

At Infinite Eye Care, we want you to be completely comfortable with your glasses. We stay up-to-date with the latest trends in eyewear and lenses to keep you looking your best. The problem is, sometimes even the best-looking frames don’t fit the best.

When your glasses are fitting properly, they will feel more comfortable, look more put-together, and ensure proper correction to your vision.

The fit of a pair of glasses is determined by four key elements:

The Frame

The width and style of the material surrounding the lenses. The frame should be level with your eyes and extend a proper length across your face.

The Temples

The extension that runs from the frame and sits on your ears to position your glasses. These must be to a specific length so that the curve does not sit too far in front of or behind your ears.

The Bridge

The portion of the frame that rests on your nose to position the placement of the lenses. The basics of determining if your bridge fits is to see how it is resting on your nose. If the bridge span is too small, your glasses will be placed too high which disrupts your pupil position. If the bridge span is too large, your glasses will continually fall down throughout the day or be positioned too low. It is crucial that despite the style of the glasses, your bridge is fitting properly so that it is nearly level with the center of your eyes.

Pupil Position

Where the pupil of your eye is in relation to your lenses. Your pupil should be near the center of your lenses to ensure that your glasses are properly correcting your vision. If your glasses are not positioned correctly, they may not actually be doing their job!

Assessing these four elements will enhance the look and feel of your glasses while improving the quality of your vision.

If you’re looking for the perfect pair of glasses or sunglasses, come into Infinite Eye Care in downtown Sauk Rapids.  

Clearing Up the Facts About Pink Eye

Winter. For some people, it’s the season that embodies staying indoors working on crafts or catching up with a few good books. For parents, it’s the season in which their children can come home with a new, exciting illness transferred from their friends at school. According to Washington's Top News, Winter is peak season for pink eye. More accurately, winter is peak season for bacterial or viral pinkeye.

The proper name for pink eye is conjunctivitis, and there are four different causes:

Viral Conjunctivitis - Symptoms can mimic that of a cold or the flu. The disease usually begins in one eye and spreads to the other within a few days. Any discharge from the eye is watery.

Bacterial Conjunctivitis - Bacterial pink eye can accompany an ear infection and will produce a yellow/green colored discharge.

Allergic Conjunctivitis - This type of conjunctivitis will usually affect both eyes. Like many allergy symptoms, the eyes will be watery, itchy, and may cause swelling. It will also accompany other allergy symptoms, such as sneezing or a scratchy throat.

Conjunctivitis Caused by Irritants - Conjunctivitis, put simply, is an irritation of the conjunctiva - the thin tissue covering the white parts of your eye and inside of your eyelid. Sometimes pinkeye can be caused by external irritants, like contact lenses, makeup, or chlorine.  

Viral and bacterial are the only types of pink eye that create discharge in your eyes. They are also the most contagious. As long as you or your child has discharge present, it is important not to come in direct contact with others. It is also important to know that is may go away after a few day, but in bacterial infection, treatment is recommended as it may cause permanent vision loss if scars are present in certain areas of the eyes.  If you get pink eye related to contact lenses, new lenses, lens cases, or eye makeup, replace these items with new ones.

Prevention

• The easiest way to prevent pink eye (especially in the winter) is to keep clean. Wash your hands, bedding, and clothing often, especially if you or someone you know comes in contact with a pink eye patient.
• Avoid touching your eyes.
• If you wear glasses, clean them regularly.
• If you wear contacts, clean, store, and replace them properly.
• Don’t share anything that comes in contact with your eyes, such as glasses, sunglasses, makeup, bedding, or towels.   

The most important thing you can do if you or someone you know develops pink eye is to seek treatment. At Infinite Eye Care, we offer urgent care & pink eye services. The sooner you seek help, the sooner you will heal.