Those who have unfortunately gotten sunscreen in their eyes are aware just how painful it can be. A real good spray in the eye can often cause burning that lasts for hours. It can take hours until the victim can open his eyes, particularly in the glaring sun.
There's no doubt rubbing sunblock in your eyes can cause a quick stop to a day at the beach instantly. Though the discomfort will likely remain for some time, it is important to treat it as soon as possible.
The most effective treatment is to put the eye under a tap of water for some time. Doing so should flush the sunblock out of the eye yet it probably won't eliminate the irritation at once. While it won't help to remove the sunscreen, applying cool, wet compresses to the eyes may have a soothing effect. Using eye drops such as Visine may be useful in flushing out the eye, but they will cause burning.
Even once the eyes have been flushed, vision will probably remain blurry for some time. If pain continues into the next day contact your optometrist.
Prevention
- Never spray sunscreen straight on the face.
- Never allow small kids to put on sunblock themselves.
- Don't leave spray lotions in reach of small children and use the lock mechanism when not in use.
- Don't let small children rub in sunscreen. If they get sunscreen on their hands they may rub it in their eyes.
- Be very careful not to apply sunblock too close to the eyes.
- Use sunglasses to guard the eyes and the areas around them from ultraviolet rays.