4 Simple Tips to Get Rid of Pink Eye at Home

We all love summer for its sunshine and the ability to finally spend a bit more time in nature, but the same activities expose us to germs and allergens, making us a lot more likely to get conjunctivitis, or as it is known by most - pink eye. In the vast majority of cases, pink eye is a condition you can treat at home with over-the-counter products and things you already have at home. To help you treat this annoying condition safely and effectively, we’ve listed several useful tips below, as well as a quick guide to different types of the condition.

There Are 4 Different Kinds of Conjunctivitis

Conjunctivitis is an inflammation or infection of the transparent membrane that covers the eye white called the conjunctiva. When this happens, it can make your eyes red, itchy, and irritated. Depending on the variety of pink eye, you can also experience discharge from the eyes. In order to treat this condition properly and safely, you’ll need to determine the kind of conjunctivitis you’re experiencing first. 

 

According to Mayo Clinic here 4 main varieties of pink eye:

 

Bacterial conjunctivitis can be caused by many different types of bacteria and its characteristic symptom is mucus or discharge that can make your eyes crusty and even make your eyelashes stick together. It typically clears up within 4-5 days, but more serious cases will require a trip to the doctor and treatment with antibiotics. 

 

Viral conjunctivitis is a common symptom of a cold or any other respiratory viral infection. These infections tend to last longer than bacterial ones and can only be treated symptomatically. 

 

Allergic pink eye is a common symptom of an allergic reaction. It usually subsides within a day or two after you take allergy medication and minimize contact with the allergen. 

 

Irritative conjunctivitis is the result of intense rubbing, dry eye, exposure to pollutants like smog, cigarette smoke, or soap. In order to treat this condition, avoid the irritants, and follow the topical treatment tips we list below.

How to Treat Pink Eye  

After you’ve determined the cause of the conjunctivitis, you also have to assess its severity. Although most cases can be safely treated at home, more serious and severe cases require medical assistance. The American Association of Ophthalmology (AAO) states you should visit a doctor if you experience the following symptoms: 

You're experience pain You have trouble seeing 

Your eyes become sensitive to light 

Your symptoms persist for a week or more 

Your symptoms are getting worse after a few days 

Your eye produces a lot of mucus 

You have a fever or body aches. 

 

If your symptoms are not severe, however, you can safely treat your symptoms at home. Here are some useful tips for treating pink eye at home: 

 

1. Avoid the Cause

The first thing you should do is to avoid the cause of the conjunctivitis, if possible. That means staying away from swimming pools if you suspect chlorine is the cause, closing any open windows if you're suffering from seasonal allergies, and not rubbing your eyes with your hands, no matter what the cause of the condition, as rubbing will only worsen your symptoms and potentially introduce other pathogens. 

 

2. Stop Wearing Contacts and Makeup for a Few Days

Doctors mostly recommend avoiding wearing reusable contact lenses for 10-12 or until the condition clears up in those who suffer from viral or bacterial conjunctivitis, as these can harbor pathogens and be the cause of reinfection in some cases. Makeup wearers should also avoid applying eyeliner, mascara, fake eyelashes, or other eye makeup during any eye infection for the same reasons. 

 

But really, we'd recommend avoiding both of these things for everyone who is experiencing pink eye, not only bacterial and viral cases because both contacts and eye makeup can further irritate the eyes and hinder recovery. 

 

3. Apply Eye Compresses

Depending on the type of pink eye you're experiencing, cold or warm eye compresses can help relieve the discomfort you're experiencing: 

 

Cold compresses will work well at soothing the itching and irritation if the pink eye is caused by an allergy, irritation, or a virus. To apply a cold compress, simply soak a clean towel or cloth in cold water, remove the excess water by wringing it out, and cover your eyes for a few minutes. You can repeat this process several times a day.​ 

 

Warm compresses will be beneficial to those suffering from bacterial conjunctivitis, as they will help loosen and remove mucus from the eye area. Follow the same instructions as in the cold compresses, but use warm water (not too hot, it shouldn't burn to the touch) and keep the compress on until the towel cools down. 

 

4. Use Hydrating Eye Drops

This method works for all cases of conjunctivitis, as lubricating eye drops, also known as artificial tears, will help moisturize, soothe, and flush out any irritants from your eye. Artificial tears are available in all pharmacies over-the-counter. You can use them several times a day, and you can even put them in the fridge to keep them cool and have an even more soothing cooling effect. Importantly, doctors advise against using Visine or other redness-reducing drops if you have pink eye, as these may sting, feel uncomfortable, and even worsen your symptoms. 

 

Lastly, we'd like to give you a few more hygienic tips that will help clear out conjunctivitis faster and prevent it from spreading to others if you have a viral or bacterial pink eye: 

 

1. Don't share towels, pillows, or anything that touches the eyes with others. 

 

2. Use a fresh face towel, pillowcase, and sheets every day until your conjunctivitis is gone. 

 

3. Don't touch your eyes with your hands, and if you do, wash them immediately.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

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What You Must Know About Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 Vaccine

The FDA recently authorized the use of the Johnson & Johnson coronavirus vaccine in adults. As the efforts for global immunization are being challenged by various logistical issues and new variants of the virus, this development could provide much-needed aid.

There is one particular advantage to the new vaccine. If you experience an allergic reaction to the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines, the CDC now says you can try Johnson & Johnson as your second dose. Read on to find out how the new vaccine compares to the existing ones and when it can be used as a substitute for another vaccine. 

 

How does the Johnson & Johnson vaccine work? 

The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is a viral vector vaccine, which is a traditional approach to vaccine production. To create this vaccine, the team took a harmless adenovirus – the viral vector – and replaced a small piece of its genetic instructions with coronavirus genes for the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein.

When injected into a person’s arm, it enters the cells. The immune system then notices these foreign proteins and makes antibodies that will protect the person if they are ever exposed to SARS-CoV-2 in the future. In that regard, the Johnson and Johnson vaccine is similar to the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine and the Russian Sputnik vaccine.

How does Johnson & Johnson compare to existing vaccines?  

The main difference is that Johnson and Johnson is a viral vector vaccine while the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines both work using a novel method called mRNA. Messenger RNA vaccines use genetic instructions from the coronavirus to tell a person’s cells to make antibodies to the spike protein, but these don’t use another virus as a vector. 

 

There are quite a few practical differences that stem from these different approaches: 

 

1. Both of the existing mRNA vaccines require two shots, while Johnson & Johnson only requires one dose. This is crucial when vaccines are in short supply. 

 

2. The Johnson & Jonson vaccine can be stored at much warmer temperatures than mRNA vaccines, which need to be shipped and stored at below-freezing temperatures. The Johnson & Johnson vaccine, on the other hand, can be stored for at least three months in a regular refrigerator, making it much easier to use and distribute.

 

3. As for efficacy, the Jonson & Johnson vaccine was found to be 72% effective at preventing COVID-19 and 86% effective at preventing severe cases of the disease. While there is still a chance a vaccinated person could get sick, their risk of hospitalization or death from COVID-19 would still be much lower. The FDA report also indicates that the vaccine protects from the UK and Brazil variants. As for the South African variant, researchers found the new vaccine less effective at 64% overall, but the vaccine was still 82% effective at preventing severe disease. 

 

While Pfizer and Moderna are reported to be approximately 95% effective at preventing Covid-19, experts note that it’s difficult to directly compare the Johnson & Johnson jab to the mRNA vaccines due to the differences in how the clinical trials were designed. 

 

The Johnson & Johnson trials were done more recently than the others, and they took into account the vaccine’s efficacy against the new variants as well.

The use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in people allergic to mRNA vaccines 

In general, health officials recommend that you get the same vaccine twice because it's difficult to assess how effective and safe mixing two vaccines is. However, if you experience an allergic reaction to the first dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine, it is still possible for you to get vaccinated against the novel coronavirus with the Johnson & Johnson (or Janssen) vaccine, according to Jessica MacNeil, MPH, an epidemiologist at the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. MacNeil further added that this could only be done under the supervision of a healthcare provider.

An immediate allergic reaction occurs within the first 4 hours after the vaccination. It is considered severe “when a person needs to be treated with epinephrine, or EpiPen, or if they must go to the hospital," states the CDC. 

 

It’s important to note that allergic reactions after the coronavirus vaccine are rare - only 2-5 people per million vaccinated in the US have experienced anaphylaxis after getting their shot. So while these new guidelines may certainly help some, the vast majority of the population won’t need to consider them. 

 

All things considered, having multiple vaccines against Covid-19 is important, and the authorization of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in the US is a big step towards ending the pandemic.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

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Using Bleach Sparingly May Still Endanger Your Health

Using gloves while handling bleach is a must, we all know that, but it turns out that gloves may not be enough to protect you from the harmful effects of bleach, as the toxic gases products containing bleach emit may get into the lungs and even the bloodstream. This is especially true about mixed cleaning products that contain both bleach and limonene, a cleaning agent and fragrance with a lemon scent commonly used in cleaning products. To learn how bleach-based cleaners can affect one’s health and how to protect yourself from the negative effects of bleach, continue reading.

When used separately, limonene and bleach are not overtly dangerous, although even then, it would be a stretch to say that these compounds are completely safe to use. Both chemicals can cause skin irritation and allergic skin reactions, but apart from that, using bleach to clean dishes and do laundry in hot water can emit toxic carcinogenic compounds, such as chloroform and carbon tetrachloride.

Limonene, on the other hand, is one of the most common volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that linger indoors, which are a group of organic chemicals emitted from everyday home items that can cause eye, throat and lung irritation and may have long-term negative health effects as well.

When combined, the two compounds can become even more harmful to one’s health, which is extremely alarming, as hundreds of cleaning brands use both ingredients in their products. The mixture of limonene and bleach exposed to light creates secondary organic aerosols (SOAs) that are released in the air.

This has been proven experimentally, with one recent study mixing the two chemicals in a controlled indoor environment and finding SOAs in far greater than normal concentrations in the air shortly after. SOAs are toxic gases that are also part of smog, and they have been long known to contribute to lung and heart disease in the long run.

Regular exposure to SOAs is extremely dangerous, as the particles of these gases are so small they can travel directly into your bloodstream through your lungs and cause difficulty breathing, coughing and even heart attacks. This is especially dangerous in an indoor environment that doesn’t typically get enough air circulation. The study mentioned above is the first of its kind to explore the interactions between fragrance compounds and other cleaning agents, and the authors point out that other fragrances, too, can potentially produce SOAs when mixed with bleach.

To avoid the negative impact of cleaning products containing bleach, consider the following tips:

• Use natural cleaners, such as baking soda or vinegar solutions instead of bleach.
• If you insist on using bleach to clean your home, opt for pure bleach and avoid scented products that contain bleach, as these are far more likely to create SOAs.
• Air out your home regularly, especially right after cleaning.
• Use a sanitary mask and gloves when using bleach.
• Avoid using bleach in hot water.
• Opt for fragrance-free cleaners altogether, as the VOCs can linger in the air or stick to furniture and textiles.

this is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     
https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
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Cleaning Your Baby’s Dummy by Sucking on It Prevents Allergies

It’s a scene parents and caregivers are all too familiar with: an infant’s dummy falls to the floor. When this happened with my first born, I rushed to clean the soiled dummy by boiling it in water or carefully washing it in the sink. But by the time my second child was born, I was considerably more relaxed, and I started do something some parents might consider a bit gross — I sucked on my child’s fallen dummy to clean it. I didn’t realise it at the time, but as new research suggests, I might actually have been doing my child’s immune system a favour.
 
Mothers who clean dummies by sucking on them have infants with a lower allergic response, according to new research. 

“We interviewed 128 mothers of infants multiple times over a period of 18 months and asked how they cleaned their child’s pacifier,” said the author in a statement. Of the 58 per cent of mothers whose children used dummies, 41 percent said they clean them via sterilisation (e.g. boiling the pacifier in water), 72 per cent said they wash them by hand, and 12 per cent of mothers said they clean their infant’s dummies by sucking on them.

“We know that exposure to certain microorganisms early in life stimulates development of the immune system and may protect against allergic diseases later.”

The researchers found that the children of soother-sucking mothers had lower levels of an antibody called immunoglobulin E, or IgE. This antibody is related to allergic responses in the body, said the author. With some exceptions, higher levels of IgE levels indicate a higher risk of having allergies and allergic asthma.

The associated decrease in IgE levels, and thus the protective effect against allergies, started at around 10 months, and the effect continued through to 18 months. More research is needed to understand what’s going on, but the author suspects that mothers are transferring health-promoting microbes to their children. The researchers would also like to know if the lower IgE production seen in these children continues into their later years.
That cleaning dummies by sucking on them could help to prevent allergies isn’t totally shocking. Research published in 2016 showed that Amish children are less susceptible to allergies, a likely consequence of their exposure to a wide variety of microbes. Similarly, kids who bite their nails and suck their thumbs develop fewer allergies. These findings add further credence to the  hygiene hypothesis — the idea that the increasing rates of autoimmune and allergic diseases seen around the world are related to society’s (relatively) newfound obsession with cleanliness. Some dirt and grime, so to speak, might actually be doing our kids some good.
“We know that exposure to certain microorganisms early in life stimulates development of the immune system and may protect against allergic diseases later,” said the author. “Parental pacifier sucking may be an example of a way parents may transfer healthy microorganisms to their young children.”

Importantly, the new study points to an association between parents who suck on their child’s dummy and children with lower IgE levels — but that doesn’t prove that pacifier sucking causes lower IgE. Correlation, as we know, doesn’t always imply causation. Another thing to remember is that this research was based on the self-reporting of parents. According to the new research, a mere 12 per cent of mothers said they use the sucking technique to clean dummies. The real figure could be higher than that, if some mothers did not want to admit to the practice. It could also be lower. Regardless, this uncertainty could be affecting the results.
And lastly, this research doesn’t speak to the risks associated with cleaning dirty, potentially germ-ridden dummies by sucking on them. Picking up a dummy from the floor of a shopping mall or airport, and then cleaning it by sucking, could be putting both parent and child at risk of contracting communicable diseases. This new study, while offering some important new insights into the factors that influence a child’s allergic response, should not necessarily be taken as an endorsement of the practice.

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