# Anyone else suffer watering eyes in cold/wind?



## Dave7 (12 Apr 2012)

My eyes water 'like crazy' in the cold.....particularly when it's windy. The optician tells me it's age related (I'm 65) and the cure is a most unpleasant operation where they drill down thro' the nasal bones and should be a last option.
Don't get me wrong......there are people a lot worse off for many reasons-but it means I can't cycle (or play golf) in anything but mild conditions. I dont even bother walking if it's cold & windy as I'm constantly drying my eyes to the point they get quite sore.
Just wondering if anyone else has this problem so we can commiserate
I have to wear specs and have spent a small fortune on various 'wrap-arounds' but nothing seems to work.


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## DCLane (12 Apr 2012)

I get it when I'm going over about 30mph (downhill usually  ) and also wear glasses.

I'm in the process of getting prescription wraparounds to see if it helps.


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## BSRU (12 Apr 2012)

My eyes have always watered in windy conditions, so I do not think it is age related, although I am not a professional eye person.
I always wear glasses to stop the watering and for eye protection.


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## GBC (12 Apr 2012)

I'm 58 and get it as well in similar conditions, either walking the dog or cycling, although I find that it stops after a while. I'm not sure if that's due to acclimatisation or the tear ducts not keeping up. Like Dave7, if anyone's got any info or advice......


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## Xiorell (12 Apr 2012)

I get this for the first 15-20 mins on a crisp morning then sort of level out after that


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## akb (12 Apr 2012)

I get this, summer or winter, regardless of the conditions, if i am not wearing cycling glasses. I am 25. I have found tinted glasses help, I have a glasses kit, which contains a mixture of 'pop-in/out' lenses to change when the conditions change.


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## BSRU (12 Apr 2012)

I was once told an old wives tale that it is something to do with blue eyes, being more sensitive to light and wind.
Obviously easily disproved if someone with another colour has the same problem.


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## billy1561 (12 Apr 2012)

My blue eyes almost always suffer with watering usually worse first thing in the morning whatever the weather. I put it down to having them corrected by laser surgery many years ago.


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## 400bhp (12 Apr 2012)

DCLane said:


> I get it when I'm going over about 30mph (downhill usually  ) and also wear glasses.
> 
> I'm in the process of getting prescription wraparounds to see if it helps.


 
Where are you getting them from?


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## MontyVeda (12 Apr 2012)

even if it's not windy just the forward motion is enough to make my eyes water. Cold breeze, strong sunlight, warm breeze... eyes water. I've tried wearing clear shades but they just stop me from drying my eyes easily, so soon gave up on them. It doesn't stop me cycling though, and I expect the people i pass assume I've just been dumped or bereaved or been sacked as I'm always bloody crying.


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## GBC (12 Apr 2012)

BSRU said:


> I was once told an old wives tale that it is something to do with blue eyes, being more sensitive to light and wind.
> Obviously easily disproved if someone with another colour has the same problem.


 
Old wives tale it is.....mine are brown.


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## tyred (12 Apr 2012)

I have this too and I do have blue eyes. Wrap-around perscription glasses help until it is wet, frosty or foggy and then they steam up and I am effectively blind.


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## Edge705 (12 Apr 2012)

Even with wrap arounds I get this (not all the time) generally if its a side or headwind very annoying


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## DCLane (12 Apr 2012)

400bhp said:


> Where are you getting them from?


 
I've picked up a set of BBB ones from eBay for £15 and am getting a prescription fitted from Direct Specs.


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## 400bhp (12 Apr 2012)

wow - cheap


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## ColinJ (12 Apr 2012)

If you wear a helmet, try a Shadow Visor?


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## youngoldbloke (12 Apr 2012)

Yes - and a runny nose. Lots of people do.


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## ohnovino (12 Apr 2012)

I cry like a baby on fast downhills. Nothing else causes it (e.g. headwinds on the flat aren't a problem), air temperature doesn't seem to make a difference and glasses don't seem to help.

Maybe I'm just really scared of descents


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## VamP (12 Apr 2012)

Yeah, get this too, but never when wearing contacts. Weird.


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## Globalti (12 Apr 2012)

I hope this helps: I wear glasses and one day on an enforced family shipping trip I nipped in to TK Max where I picked up a pair of very wrap-around sun specs for £12.99. I popped out the lenses and got them glazed for £50 to my prescription with the cheapest plastic. The lenses are quite thick at the edges and paying more for a denser plastic would have made them thinner but that doesn't bother me. I got them in single prescription and not vari-focal so reading a map or computer is a bit tricky but they protect my eyes very well as they fit snugly. Fogging happens when I stop if I'm sweaty but soon clears when I move.

Many opticians will shy away from glazing a wrap-around frame because they are worried about the thickness of the outer edges of the lenses and the very slight optical distortion - obviously a flat lens is optically much more the ideal. In use the edges don't show and the slight distortion is immaterial as soon as you start moving.

If you can't find an optician to do it, ask them where they reluctantly send specs for repair once they have failed to persuade customers to buy a new set. You will find that in every town there's a scruffy shop in a back street with a technician working miracles with glue, solder and tiny bolts who will know somebody willing to undertake the job for you at a very cheap price.


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## Dragonwight (12 Apr 2012)

I only get this now and again and find it soon goes. I wear contacts and wrap around military grade sunglasses to stop my contacts drying out and debris getting in. Have you considered goggles as an alternative? Im no medical expert but if your eyes are weeping all the time it cant be good for them.


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## billy1561 (12 Apr 2012)

I actually considered goggles but then again I get enough insults riding my bike as it is.


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## Nearly there (12 Apr 2012)

My eyes are sensitive but tend to stop streaming after about half an hour so does the nose


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## Orange (12 Apr 2012)

My eyes are blue and I have the opposite problem - the wind dries them out. Probably something to do with wearing contact lenses, so I usually wear sunglasses or yellow tinted ones and that keeps them moister.


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## Terry Kay (12 Apr 2012)

I was getting really bad runny eyes on the commute down the hill when I started in November.. Combination of the speed (it was down hill!) and the cold I think..
I balked at the price of cycling glasses so ordered a pair of close fitting Cat safety specs.. Not had a problem since!
Only problem is steaming up if I stop for any length of time, but they also come in handy when I'm working on the car!


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