Dry eye relief in Visalia, California

In Visalia, dry eyes track the San Joaquin Valley’s long, hot, rainless summer. NOAA’s normals for the Visalia station list roughly 95 days a year at 90°F or hotter and no measurable rain in July or August, and afternoon humidity at nearby Fresno sits in the low 20s. Air conditioning, dust and screens add to it. Relief comes from shielding your eyes, managing indoor air and using a lubricating drop exactly as labeled.

Visalia’s climate in NOAA’s figures

NOAA’s 1991 to 2020 climate normals for its Visalia weather station describe one of the hotter, drier places in California’s farm belt:

• Normal yearly precipitation is 10.32 inches, and only about 26 days a year bring a tenth of an inch or more.
• July and August both have a normal rainfall of zero, and June through August together average 0.13 inch.
• Highs average 93.8°F in July and 93.2°F in August.
• About 95 days a year reach 90°F, and roughly 11 reach 100°F.
• January is the wettest month at 1.96 inches, with highs around 55°F.
• Freezing nights are uncommon, about nine a year.

Heat, AC and summer afternoons

NOAA’s humidity table has no Visalia entry, so Fresno, about 45 miles north on Highway 99, is the closest comparison. Fresno’s afternoon humidity averages 21 percent in July and 22 percent in August. Air that dry draws water from anything exposed to it, including the thin film of tears over your eyes.

Indoors isn’t much kinder. From May into October, Visalia homes, offices, schools and cars run the air conditioner for months, and AC removes moisture as it cools. The result is a day spent moving between dry outdoor heat and dry, chilled indoor air, usually with a vent blowing somewhere nearby.

• Point dash vents at your chest or hands, not your face, especially on long drives on 198 or 99.
• In the office, ask to have a ceiling diffuser angled away from your desk, or move the chair.
• Keep a bedroom ceiling fan on low, or off, so it doesn’t blow across your eyes all night.
• Drink water through the day; heat and low humidity dry more than your eyes.

Tule fog season

Winter changes the picture. The National Weather Service office in Hanford, one county over, documents tule fog in its monthly weather summaries: dense ground fog that settles on the valley floor after rain, on calm nights under stable air, often from late fall into early spring. Fresno’s morning humidity averages 88 percent in December and January.

Fog is damp, so it isn’t the fog drying your eyes. The trouble comes from what people do about it: staying indoors with the furnace running, sitting in a car with the defroster and heater blasting, and squinting through gray mornings on the road. Turn the defroster’s airflow to the windshield only, and take a slow blink break whenever you stop. On the worst fog mornings, the safest choice is often to delay the drive.

Dust, fields and orchards

Visalia sits among the orchards, dairies and row crops of Tulare County, and dry soil moves. Harvest, field prep, tractors on county roads and wind across bare ground lift fine dust into the air, especially late in summer when nothing has fallen from the sky for months. Farm and packing house workers, landscapers and anyone driving rural roads with the windows down take in a steady dose.

Gritty air on top of dry air makes eyes feel scratchy. Don’t rub them, since that drags particles across the surface. Wash your hands, use a clean tissue, and wear protective eyewear on the job. If it feels like something is stuck in your eye, see an eye doctor instead of waiting.

Weekends up the hill

Visalia is a jumping-off point for drives up into Sequoia National Park, and the climb on Highway 198 takes you from the valley floor into the mountains in an afternoon. Higher, windier air dries the eyes in its own way; dry air, wind and altitude explains how. Pack sunglasses, keep your drops in a bag out of direct sun, and plan a few rest stops on the way up.

Using a lubricating drop in the valley heat

Quell’s label gives its Uses as: For use as a protectant against further irritation or to relieve dryness of the eye. The formula is designed to reinforce the tear film’s oil layer to help reduce moisture loss, which is the main thing a 21 percent afternoon is working against. Follow the directions as printed: Apply 1 drop 3 times per day in each eye. One more line on the label applies every single time: Do not touch tip of bottle to any surface to avoid contamination.

Heat matters for the bottle too. The label says Store between 15° to 30°C (59° to 86°F), and a car parked in a Visalia lot in July gets far hotter than that within minutes. Carry the bottle inside with you, and don’t leave spares in the glove box; can you leave eye drops in a hot car explains why.

Ordering Quell to Visalia

Quell ships from Brentwood, Tennessee, to Tulare County addresses for $10.00 per order, free with 3 or more bottles. No arrival date is promised, so order before a heat wave rather than during one, and bring the package in promptly. See the Visalia page and the California page for more.

When dryness needs an eye doctor

If your eyes stay uncomfortable after the heat breaks, or dryness starts to affect how you see, make an appointment with an optometrist or ophthalmologist. Pinning down the cause, and caring for it, is their job, not a drop’s. Stop and get help if the label’s warning applies: 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.