Dry eyes on a plane

Eyes dry out on planes because cabin air is dry, the overhead vent blows across your face, and hours of screens slow your blinking. You can bring eye drops on board: TSA allows them in carry-on bags at 3.4 ounces (100 milliliters) or less. Keep Quell in the bag under the seat in front of you and use it as the label directs: Apply 1 drop 3 times per day in each eye.

Why dry eyes on a flight happen

The surface of the eye is covered by the tear film, which has three layers: mucus against the eye, water in the middle, and a thin layer of oil on the outside that slows evaporation. Every blink spreads a fresh coat. Anything that dries the air around you or moves it across your face pulls water off that film faster, and a cabin does both for hours on end.

Cabin air is dry, and you sit in it for the whole flight with no way to step outside. Add a seat by the window with sun on your face, or a long stretch reading a tablet, and many people notice their eyes long before landing. Quell is designed to reinforce the tear film’s oil layer to help reduce moisture loss, which is why people pack it for flights.

The overhead air vent

The little nozzle above your seat is the easiest thing on the plane to change. A stream of air aimed at your face works like a breeze on the eye’s surface. Twist it toward your chest or lap, angle it toward the aisle, or close it. If your neighbor’s vent hits you, it’s fine to ask them to angle it away.

Screens and sleeping on flights

Seatback screens, phones and laptops all cut down how often you blink, and a movie marathon on a long flight can mean hours of it. Every so often, look away down the aisle or out the window and blink a few times on purpose. Dimming the screen helps you look away more often in a dark cabin.

Sleeping upright with the vent running can leave eyes feeling scratchy when you wake. Closing the vent before you nod off, or wearing a sleep mask, keeps the draft off your face. If you wake up dry and it’s time for a dose, the label’s directions still apply.

Can you bring eye drops on a plane?

Yes. TSA’s entry for eye drops says they’re allowed in carry-on bags in containers of 3.4 ounces (100 milliliters) or less, and in checked bags too. A .33 fl oz (10 mL) bottle is far under the limit. Pack it in your quart-size liquids bag for screening, then move it to the bag at your feet once you’re through, so you aren’t opening the overhead bin mid-flight. A bottle in a checked bag is out of reach until baggage claim, and checked bags are sometimes delayed.

Flying outside the US? Security rules abroad are set by each country, so check the rules for any airport you depart from. The traveling with eye drops guide covers packing beyond the flight.

Using eye drops in your seat

• Wash your hands in the restroom first, or before boarding. A tray table and an armrest are not clean.
• Wait for smooth air. Turbulence is when a bottle tip bumps your eye or your lap.
• Lean your head back against the headrest and look up.
• Pull your lower lid down and let one drop fall in. Do not touch tip of bottle to any surface to avoid contamination.
• Close the eye gently for a moment, then do the other eye.
• Cap the bottle at once and put it back in your bag.

The eye drops have a naturally milky-brown appearance. This is normal and does not indicate a problem with the product. That milky look is normal and isn’t a sign that the flight did anything to the bottle.

Dry eyes after flying

Eyes can still feel dry for a while after landing, especially after a long flight or one with little sleep. The label doesn’t change the dose for that: Apply 1 drop 3 times per day in each eye. Don’t add extra drops to catch up. The guide to using more than three drops a day explains who to ask if you think you need more.

Some feelings after a flight are not dryness. 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.

Time zones and long-haul flights

Quell’s label says three times per day. It doesn’t mention time zones, flights that cross the night, or which clock to count by. Spacing the three doses across your waking hours at the destination is one way to read it, but the label doesn’t say, so a pharmacist is the person to check a schedule with.

Before you fly

Check how much is left in your bottle a week or two ahead. Quell is sold online, ships only to US addresses, and the site doesn’t promise a delivery date, so ordering in the last few days is a gamble. The guide to buying eye drops before a trip abroad covers the international case.