As summer moves into fall, your allergies may make you look as woebegone as you feel!
The backyard garden can be a beautiful, relaxing hangout spot, but for the estimated 40 to 50 million of us in the U.S.1 with hay fever (a.k.a. allergic rhinitis), inhaling pollen from ragweed, grasses, and trees can trigger more than just stuffiness. Allergies also are often accompanied by a runny nose, sneezing and bloodshot eyes, and may even create dark circles under the eyes2—making us look like we just lost a round with Rocky Balboa. Worse, allergies can last for weeks!
Even if you’ve never experienced allergies, they may develop at any age and time of year. Beware of any of the undesirable signs below, if they accompany your sniffles and sneezes. Treating them early will help you feel, and look, a whole lot better.
- Allergic Shiner: Congestion of the small blood vessels beneath the skin in the delicate eye area can cause swelling and discoloration, which creates dark circles.3 Hence, the term shiner.
- Adenoid Face: This condition is common in children, but can affect grownups, too. Nasal allergies can trigger swelling of the adenoids (the lymph tissue lining the back of the throat and extending behind the nose), which blocks airflow through the nose, and may make us look tired and droopy.4
- Excessive Mouth Breathing: If you continually breathe through your mouth, due to extreme nasal congestion, you could develop a high, arched palate, a raised upper lip and an overbite.5
- Nasal Crease: When you rub your nose upward to relieve nasal congestion and itching, it can produce a line across the bridge of the nose, called a nasal crease.6
Although OCEAN® Nasal Care products do not treat allergies, nasal spray and sinus rinse can help flush nasal allergens and cleanse the sinus area to aid in symptom relief from nasal congestion and help to improve your overall look.
Make sure to see a board-certified allergist to determine the most effective treatment for you.
OCEAN® is a registered trademark of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc., or its affiliates. © 2014 Valeant Pharmaceuticals North America LLC (SKOCN140021)
1 Allergic rhinitis (hay fever). Retrieved July 28, 2014 from http://www.acaai.org/allergist/allergies/Types/rhinitis/Pages/default.aspx
2 The ugly truth about summer allergies. (2014). Retrieved July 28, 2014 from http://www.acaai.org/allergist/news/New/Pages/TheUglyTruthaboutSummerAllergies.aspx
3 Allergic rhinitis (hay fever). Retrieved July 28, 2014 from http://www.acaai.org/allergist/allergies/Types/rhinitis/Pages/default.aspx
4 The ugly truth about summer allergies. (2014). Retrieved July 28, 2014 from http://www.acaai.org/allergist/news/New/Pages/TheUglyTruthaboutSummerAllergies.aspx
5 Allergic rhinitis (hay fever). Retrieved July 28, 2014 from http://www.acaai.org/allergist/allergies/Types/rhinitis/Pages/default.aspx
6 Allergic rhinitis (hay fever). Retrieved July 28, 2014 from http://www.acaai.org/allergist/allergies/Types/rhinitis/Pages/default.aspx6