Dry eye relief in Charlotte, North Carolina

Charlotte is drier than its Southern reputation suggests. April afternoons average 46 percent humidity, winter afternoons hover in the low 50s, and the furnace and air conditioner split the year between them. To keep eyes comfortable, steer vents and heaters away from your face, wear sunglasses on breezy days, take screen breaks, and use a lubricating drop as its label directs. See an eye doctor for pain or blurred vision.

How humid is Charlotte, really?

NOAA’s relative humidity table for Charlotte Douglas International Airport shows an annual afternoon average of 52 percent, a few points below Atlanta, Nashville or Memphis. Month by month, the afternoon figures look like this:

• April: 46 percent, the lowest of the year.
• March: 49 percent.
• February, May and November: 51 percent each.
• January and December: 54 percent.
• August and September, the muggiest afternoons: 56 percent.

Mornings are a different world, often in the high 70s or 80s, which is why a foggy sunrise over Lake Norman can give way to a crisp, dry afternoon.

Rain and temperature in the Queen City

NOAA’s 1991 to 2020 normals for the airport, about 730 feet above sea level on the Piedmont, show a city with less rain than many of its neighbors:

• About 43.6 inches of precipitation a year, several inches less than Atlanta or Nashville.
• February is the driest month at about 3.13 inches, with October close at 3.16.
• Winter, December through February, totals about 10.2 inches.
• July highs average 90.3°F, and around 49 days a year hit 90°F or above.
• January averages 52.3°F for the high and 31.8°F for the low, with about 58 freezing nights a year.
• Snow is occasional, about 3.5 inches in a typical year.

Spring in Charlotte: the dry stretch

March and April combine the year’s lowest afternoon humidity with sun, wind and a lot of time outdoors. Paddlers head to the U.S. National Whitewater Center, runners take over the greenways along Little Sugar Creek, and patios across South End fill up. A breezy 46 percent afternoon pulls water off the surface of the eye steadily. Some practical moves:

• Wear close-fitting sunglasses for long walks or rides, especially near the water where wind picks up.
• Plan long outdoor workouts for the morning, when humidity runs much higher.
• Keep a bottle in a bag that stays with you rather than in a car baking in a parking deck.
• Blink deliberately a few times if you’ve been reading a phone outdoors in the sun.

Uptown offices and long screen days

Banking towers, call centers and home offices put a lot of Charlotteans in front of monitors from morning to evening. Concentrating on a screen cuts the blink rate, so tears spread less often, while office air conditioning or heat keeps the air moving and dry. Look away from the screen at something across the room every so often and let your eyes close fully a few times. Adjusting a monitor so it sits slightly below eye level means your lids cover more of each eye. Our guide on dry eyes at the end of the day has more on the 5 p.m. scratchy feeling.

Race weekends and Panthers Sundays

Big outdoor events in and around Charlotte mean hours in the sun and wind, plus exhaust and tire smoke at the track in Concord. Sunglasses help with both glare and grit. If something lands in your eye and won’t rinse out, or if it hurts, that’s a job for medical care, not a lubricating drop.

What Quell’s Drug Facts say

Quell is designed to reinforce the tear film’s oil layer to help reduce moisture loss. Its label lists the Uses as: For use as a protectant against further irritation or to relieve dryness of the eye. Directions: Apply 1 drop 3 times per day in each eye. Read this caution before you order: Caution should be used in those with egg or bird allergies — For use in the eyes only. Keep the bottle clean according to the label: Do not touch tip of bottle to any surface to avoid contamination. You can read the entire panel on the Drug Facts page.

Ordering to Charlotte and Mecklenburg County

Quell ships from Brentwood, Tennessee, to Charlotte, Matthews, Huntersville, Concord and the rest of North Carolina. There’s no account to create, shipping is $10.00, and 3 or more bottles ship free. You’ll receive a tracking email; we don’t promise a delivery date. See the Charlotte page and the North Carolina page for more.

When to see a Charlotte eye doctor

If dryness keeps coming back despite changes at home and work, or if you have pain or vision changes, book an eye exam. The label says: Stop use and ask a doctor if you feel eye pain or changes in your vision, if irritation or redness continues, or if the condition worsens or persists for 72 hours.