Hello,
Thank you for your question.
Often in the winter, many mucous membranes dry out, including the eyes. This can be due to numerous things, but you could be having a basic allergic response that is leading to inflammation in your eyes.
Here are a few things to consider:
1. Drink plenty of water. In the winter, the thirst mechanism is lowered and people do not get thirsty and therefore do not drink enought water and become dehydrated. You should drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces daily and then for every 6 ounces of caffeine or alchohol you consume, you should add 8 more ounces of water.
2. At night, try warm compresses on your eyes with a few drops of euclyptus essential oil diffused in the warm water that is then added to a cloth that can be drapped over the eyes.
3. Try flushing your sinuses out with a saline (salt water) flush. You can buy these at the drug store. Another way is to get a Neti Pot that you could find on line or in a health food store. This can flush the sinuses in a unique way that can lower any possible allergic reaction you may be having.
4. Avoid allergy causing foods. peanut, soy, wheat, dairy, corn are the top 5. These foods can cause a "delayed allergic IgG response" that take 48-72 hours AFTER you have consumed them. You could also have other IgG allergies to other foods. An alternative health care practitioner such as a Naturopathic Physician (or a willing conventional doctor) can run such a test to find out which specific foods you may be having a reaction to.
5. Try homeopathic euphrasia (eye bright). You can find this remedy at the health food store. Take it as directed on the bottle.
Be sure to consider seeing an EENT specialist also to make sure nothing serious is going on. Also, any antihistamine such as Claratin D can have a rebound affect on any histamine response making things worse. Attempt to treat the cause versus simply treating the symptom.
I hope this helps. Good Luck.
Naturopathic Medical Doctor
Board Certified Naturopathic Medicine, Expert in Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy since 2006