Preservative-Free Allergy Drops

It’s allergy season. Our eyes get itchy, watery, dry, and red. I will first talk about a few ingredients found in preservative-free allergy drops and why are they important. The next section will talk about medicated eye drops for allergy symptoms.

Disclaimer: Please understand that this is not medical advice so do consult with your optometrist or medical practitioner whether these drops are right for you. Every individual may have a unique response to drops and any eye drop will have side effects.

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While we know that certain allergy medications are great at reducing significant allergic symptoms, they can cause adverse effects by drying out the eyes, that is why eye drops are still important in addition with allergy medications or those with only ocular manifestations.

Ecotine is a naturally protective substance produced by bacteria to protect itself in extremely salty water conditions. In medicine, it reduces eye inflammation and irritation by forming a protective layer around proteins, enzymes, and cell membranes in the tear film.

Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a natural occurring glycosaminoglycan. Sodium hyaluronate is the salt form of HA, which is a more stable compound for topical application. It is commonly found in dry eye drops because it binds to water, prevents dehydration, and is highly biocompatible as it is naturally found in high concentrations in the eye. Studies show HA improves optical quality, promotes corneal epithelial wound healing by stimulating epithelial migration, and protects corneal epithelial damage. This is great for those who have dry eyes.

Benzalkonium chloride (BAK) is a preservative that is widely used in eye drops since the 1940s. Almost 70% of all eye drops still use BAK. It is effective as a preservative since its good at killing microorganisms. It acts as a detergent to lysing cell membranes. Recent studies have shown that high concentrations of BAK can be toxic to ocular tissues by causing apoptotic response in corneal tissues. However, there are also many studies that show that BAK at various concentrations does not affect corneal tissues and is no more toxic than other preservatives found in eye drops. Patients who have long standing symptoms of dry eye can consider drops that are preservative-free.

Learn more about dry eye drops

1) Hylo Dual

Contains 0.5mg/ml Sodium Hyaluronate, 20mg/ml Ectoine, a borate buffer and water.

✓ Preservative Free

✓ Good for dry eyes

✓ Natural ingredients

✓ Kid safe ≥ 6 years old

✓ Safe for contact lens use

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Buy now on Amazon.ca

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2) HydraSense Allergy

Contains Sodium hyaluronate 0.15% (naturally sourced), ectoine 2% (20mg/ml), sodium chloride, sodium citrate dihydrate, citric acid anhydrous, water

✓ Preservative Free

✓ Good for dry eyes

✓ Natural ingredients

✓ Kid safe ≥ 6 years old

✓ Safe for contact lens use

✓ Made in Canada

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Prescription Allergy Eye Drops

These are the top prescription Dual Activity Agent (Mast cell stabilizer / Anti-histamine) available in Canada. Most over-the-counter (OTC) medications are single activity, meaning they are only act as an anti-histamine or mast cell stabilizer. Dual activity agents will act by relieving symptoms of allergies within half hour and sustain for half a day to whole day before reapplication. Talk to your optometrist if you’re having allergic symptoms at your next appointment to see if these are right for you.

1) Pazeo

0.7% olopatadine hydrochloride | Preservative: BAK ? | 1 drop QD

✓ Dual Activity Agent (Mast cell stabilizer / Anti-histamine)

✓ Safe for kids > 2 years

✕ Pregnancy: Category C

✕ Nursing: Caution

Rx Prescription only in Canada & USA. Ask your optometrist for more details.

Recommendation: Basically a stronger Pataday Once a day / Pataday Twice a day (Patanol). If you have strong allergies and only want to use the drop once for the entire day, this is the one.

2) Pataday / Patanol

0.2% / 0.1% olopatadine | Preservative: BAK ? | 1 drop QD / BID

✓ Dual Activity Agent (Mast cell stabilizer / Anti-histamine)

? Kid safe: not established in <18 years of age

✕ Pregnancy: Category C

? Nursing: Not established

Rx Prescription only in Canada | OTC in USA

In USA, FDA has approved two allergy drugs previously only available via prescription can now be sold as over-the-counter (OTC) medications: Pataday Once a day (aka Pataday) and Pataday Twice a day (Patanol).

Recommendation: One of the most popular drops for allergies. Easily found at the pharmacy with a prescription in Canada or over the counter in USA.