How much discomfort a stye on the eyelid can cause! People often say that a stye was “blown on,” but in fact, in 95% of cases, the cause of this condition is an infection that targets individuals with weakened immune systems. A stye is an inflammatory process in the eyelash follicle or sebaceous gland. This type of stye is called an external stye and is accompanied by:
- redness,
- swelling of the eyelid,
- pain,
- and after a few days, pus forms under the skin, which eventually bursts.
Usually, a stye clears up in about a week. There is also an internal stye, or meibomianitis (inflammation of the meibomian glands), which is less painful and almost unnoticeable, but more dangerous because the pus drains into the eye and can lead to further infection. Under no circumstances should you attempt to open a stye yourself, as this can lead to serious consequences. The infection can easily spread to the eyeball and brain, potentially leading to a fatal outcome.
Frequently recurring styes are a sign of systemic disturbances in the body, weakened immunity, endocrine disorders, and vitamin deficiencies. To avoid styes, it’s important to follow hygiene rules and boost your immune system. To help a stye heal faster, accessible folk remedies are often used.
Folk remedies for styes include various compresses and lotions, warm treatments, cauterization, and more. Some methods can only be used at the initial stage of the condition, such as warming the stye with dry heat.
But where does this pesky stye on the eye come from?
Folk Remedies for Styes
Warming the stye—whether considered the best folk remedy or not according to traditional medicine—if you decide to use it, do it correctly. One of the most common treatments for a stye is warming it with a hard-boiled egg. Wrap the hot egg in several layers of cotton fabric and apply it to the stye. As the egg cools, gradually remove the layers of fabric. For added effect, you can wrap the hot egg not in fabric but in washed plantain leaves. Perform the procedure until the egg cools and repeat every two hours. Instead of an egg, you can use flax seeds heated in a pan. Place the hot seeds in a handkerchief or towel and warm the stye.
Lotions and compresses are more painful but no less effective folk remedies for styes. At the very beginning of the condition, try making a semi-alcoholic compress. To do this, soak a cotton pad in vodka and squeeze it well. Gently apply the compress to the stye, cover it with a bandage or cotton, and secure it with adhesive tape. The duration of the lotion is 10 minutes; if you experience severe burning, remove the compress as it may cause a burn. Other suitable options for compresses include:
- yogurt,
- castor oil,
- soda solution (1 tablespoon per 100 ml of hot water).
Plants with pronounced wound-healing, anti-inflammatory, and antiseptic properties are also widely used for lotions.
Folk Remedies for Styes Recommend Garlic:
- Cut a garlic clove in half.
- Dip a cotton swab into the garlic juice.
- Carefully apply the juice to the eyelid where the unfortunate inflammation has appeared, along the lash line.
How Do Folk Remedies Suggest Using Plantain?
- Pour a glass of boiling water over 3 tablespoons of plantain leaves.
- Let the infusion steep under a blanket until it cools.
- Apply a compress to the eyelid for 20-30 minutes, 5-6 times a day.
Aloe is also among the plants recommended by folk remedies for styes:
- Cut a leaf of aloe and squeeze out its juice.
- Dilute the juice with clean water in a 10:1 ratio and apply a compress to the affected eyelid three times a day.
- Alternatively, steep a medium-sized aloe leaf in a glass of clean water for 8 hours. Use the resulting liquid for lotions (15-20 minutes).
You can also use calendula if you have no contraindications to it. Simply pour a glass of boiling water over 1 tablespoon of calendula flowers and let it steep for half an hour.
An old “grandmother’s” remedy for styes: tying a red woolen thread around the wrist or in the shape of a figure-eight (try to wrap it three times) around the middle and ring fingers of the hand opposite the eye with the stye. The thread should be worn for three days and then burned.
