One week using "Wet Ones" with Benzethonium Chloride

Dear acet,

Honjon used the antibacterial handwipes with Benzalkonium Chloride and had the same results. Both are ammonium salts or compounds.

The hand wipes in the US have Benzethonium Chloride in them at .03%.

In most eye meds they use BAK (Benzalkonium Chloride) at .01% as a preservative. That includes the over the counter eye drops for lubrication too. The only thing is now they realize that is does damage to the eye after long use.

Look up preservatives in the eye meds.

Good news there are 3 with no preservatives in them. They are:

Refresh Celluvisc, Refresh Endura and Refresh Plus. Bad news they are more expensive.

It would be better to use the wipes and kill it in a few months then to use these meds for years.

They have a new preservatuive called Purite that is disappear on contact but what I read was it may not do it as well if you have dry eyes. Heh! Who needs these drops but the people with dry eyes.

Hope this helps you a little.

Thinking of you,

Lyndad79

 

hi linda newbie here to this site and tried the wet ones just for one day and i have noticed a difference in my eyes they dont feel sore or itchy. and they dont look red and angry after all this time washing with baby shampoo and drops(bought my self as told by optician) they helped a little bit.so will keep using them and see what happens maybe able to wear mascara again as i stopped when i looked as though i had been crying for a fortnight (non stop) lol and so sore so once again i thank you and so pleased to have found this site thank you again

Dear Jeanette,

You can wear mascara and kill this at the same time. You just need to buy throw away wands (buy oninternet beauty supply places). You use 2 wands each time and never put a used wand in the mascara. Buy new mascara and makeup. I used throw away applicators from the drug store for (look like cuetips or cotton buds UK) with eye shadow. I used a dark eye shadow for eye liner. Never put used applicator in new eye shadow,

I used 2 wash rags (1 for each eye) to clean eyes. I used white to throw in the white load with bleach.

Now that I do not have it any more I still use a throw away wand but will use 1 for both eyes but never put a used back in the mascara.

Eyes that are dry cannot wash the bacteria out as normal eyes do.

My friend used a facial scrub with Benzethonium Chloride in it and I used the handwipes (don't make the facial scrub with Benzethonium Chloride in it any longer) with Benzethonium Chloride in it.

This works but remember it takes a few months. Honjon used the wipes in the UK and they work too.  They have Benzalkonium Chloride in them. Both are ammonium salts or compounds and acts as a antimicrobial agent.

I used a gentle makeup remover and 2 washrags to remove the makeup.

Hope this information helps you.

Thinking of you,

Lynda79

hi linda will look for the wands and i always use cotton balls one for each eye and to take make-up off(when i used it) but now i can look forward to wearing make-up again.no one tells you these things. what you can use or even try it is sites like this that gives you help. you mention wash rags is it just cloth that you have or do you buy them? can you buy the wands in the chemist (uk) or jut on the internet? well once again i thank you  for my eyes back   

Dear Jeanette,

Washrags are what I use to normally wash face and body. They come with towell sets. I just buy the white to put in bleach load to kill the bacteria. Don't want to re-infect myself.

The applicators for eyeliner (that look like cotton buds) are bought at the chemist (in US called drug store). Just don't use fingers or put anything in makeup.

Be sure and clean brushes often (especially if get near the eyes).

The throw away wands are bought on-line to buy in bulk. I bought hundreds. I liked the small head ones as didn't use as much mascara.

I now use 1 throw away wand for both eyes as the Bleph is gone but do not want to reintroduce bacteria to my eyes, so I don't put anything used into any makeup. My daughters actually, are the ones who helped me by looking for these things for me. It took a few minds to put this together.

Hope this helps.

Thinking of you,

Lynda79 

 

that is a great help in uk called face clothes got a bit confused(doesnt take a lot) but that is sorted out will look on-line for the wands that should be fun!! any way not going any where yet!!  dont wear eye liner dont look right look as if grand daughter ran amok with make up lol  any way i am rambling now and here"s to non red and sore eyes in the future i will keep you up to date if that is ok and thinking of you   

Dear Jeanette,

Would love to hear how you are doing, After just aweek or so you should be able to see a difference, or at least feel the difference so as to be able to go down in the number of times you do it each day.

I tore the wipe into 8 strips so that only a small section was over my finger so as to have control of where I wanted to rub it.

Thanks for the face cloths info.

Hope to hear you are better soon.

Lynda79

dear lynda79 will keep you informed as to progress and i to will remember about wash rags found a difference aready and just been a few days i have done that as i read one of your earlier posts because already had wet ones in but wrong ones! think of you and hope to hear from you soon   

 

Dear Jeanette,

Honjon used the wipes in the UK (they have Benzalkonium Chloride in them). I used the ones with Benzethonium Chloride in them. They are both ammonium salts or compounds. Google both and see. Both seem to do the trick as they act as an antimicrobials.

I did read about a Dr. who said to use different face cloths on the internet too. So not just me saying it.

This is bacterial and can be killed. Only people who are allergic to the items I mentioned above can't use it. Lanolin allergy is a problem too, as the wipes have that in it too.

Wish you well,

Lynda79

 

hi lynda79 yes i did find wet ones with Benzethomium Chloride in and using them now and i have only been using for a few days and have made a big difference (i have my eyes back) and will be able to wear mascara again and not look as though i have been crying for a fortnight if i went anywhere i some new face cloths already (wash rags) in US (i remembered) and i will be using them asap. i am so glad i came upon this site by accident how did you find this out in the first place Lynda? did a DR  tell you or was it just by accident? will look forward to hearing how you found out! but either way i am glad you did

Dear Jeanette,

I had this and mentioined it to my daughter and she said her mother-in-law killed it. She used and Avon Facial Scrub that was an antibacterial one.

She had it moving up onto her eye lide (where you wear your eye shadow). It looked awful my daughters said. I saw examples of it on the internet when I was researching Blepharitis. My daughter said it wasn't the same thing. I said it was the same.

When I tried to purchase the facial scrub they no longer made it with Benzethonium Chloride in it.

I looked on line to find out what else had Benzethonium Chloride in it.

I had the WETONES in my house already.

I tore them into strips and away I went.

As for the makeup, my daughters helped me by looking for those items for me.

I used the 2 wash cloths just for logical reasons. I did see later that a Dr. on the internet recommended to do that too.

I gave this information to my eye Dr. after I had several good responses to the information.

I did a lot of research and was amazed learning about the preservatives that had .01% of BAK in them that was going into the eyes. The wipes are .03% and don't go in, just around the eye to kill it.

Honjon on this site used another handwipe with another ammonimun salt or compound (Benzalkonium Chloride) and I realized they work because they are both an antimicrobial agent.

There is an antibiotic that will kill it too.

Hope you kill it as we did in a few months. The last couple of months are easy as only 2 times a day.

Thinking of you,

Lynda79

hi Lynda79 it is going very well with the wet ones and looking forward to doing it only twice a day will also use the wash cloths as well. i cant believe the difference it has made already. by the time my son gets married next year will defintley have my eyes back and i will be wearing make-up sooner than i thought i would be!! i had visions of me at the wedding typical M/I/LAW with red eyes my M//LAW has dry eyes and hers are sometimes gunky (sorry only way to describe them) so will tell her about wet ones and see how she goes? so it is two different    ingrediants in wet ones will keep you informed on my progress if  thats ok

 

Dear Jeanette,

The killing ingredient is the Benzethonium Chloride. In the UK the handwipes have Benzalkonium Chloride. Both are doing the job.

As for that gunk, I have a friend in a rest home and she had that yellow gunk on her eyes. I was trying to wash it off with water and I thought "Why not?" I pulled out a wet one and used it on her eyes and it was so instant in it's killing of it I was amazed. I do it 2 times a week now.

She is really old so can't do it more often and it keeps it under control.

It is bacterial too. You can tell your family member about this experience and she may be willing to try it.

Glad to here you are doing better.

Lynda79

 

dear lynda 79  i will tell Mother/In/LAW  to try it and see what happens she has bad hands so but she will be able to do it and i will defitnitly pass that on she has had this for so long cannot remember how long really!! but will tell you how she gets on if thats ok!! jeanette43594

Dear jeanette,

Do you see your mom-in-law a couple of times aw

 week? Perhaps you can do it for her. If not, is there someone who can do it for her? I go twice a week and it keeps it down.

Just a little on lashes now each time I go compared to her eyes being almost shut closed with gunk.

Just a suggestion as it works on my friend and she is in her 90's.

She has no children so I am it for her.

Hope this helps.

Lynda79

hi Lynda79 just to give you an up date. joined this site about 16/17 days ago buy accident so pleased i did because if not i would still have red and sore eyes.but thanks to all the information that is posted on here all cleared up!!! in only the short time i have had this since 2004  and now can wear mascara again did not know about the disposable wands and have my eyes back i like a lot of others on this site would like to say a big thank you m/i/l is doing it she is slowly getting there as well. did not believe at first as they keep saying keep away from eyes. and here she wiping the lash line with them. i do not have to order wands online as there is chemist  about i mile away that stocks them! will ask at my local ones(keep forgetting!) i hope this finds you well  thinking of you  jeanette43595 thank you

Dear Jeanette,

I really appreciate your thoughtfulness. I wanted to share this answer to a problem that the Dr. said was no cure. I had no idea how many symptoms were out there and how bad it was until I posted on a few sites.

I was just a desperate person like my friend who was willing to try just about anything. By the way, rubbing alcohol does not work. See what I mean.

It just makes my day when I hear that others are getting relief. I thought I was going to go crazy with the constant itching.

Hope your M/I/L gets well too.

So glad to hear the good news.

Lynda79

dear Lynda as i have said many times if it were not for you and your friend i would still be desperate what with the itchiness and the soreness because you try anything and everything to ease it.i for one am pleased you passed this on! so hopefully will have some more good news about M/I/L!!! take care and will keep you updated. jeanette 

 

hi Lynda as i have said if was not for you i would stil have red sore and itchy eyes and be very desperate at this moment.i have only had this since 2004 and it was driving me crazy so my sympathy goes to every one who has suffered with it for a lot more years than me.will keep you updated on M/I/L"s progress!!      

 

Hi Lynda79

Thanks for posting the information about the Wet Ones.

I’ve had Blepharitis for a few months and am looking to try new forms of treatment. I’ve tried the usual suggested methods, ie antibiotics, warm compresses, massage, a boiled water solution with bicarbonate of soda etc., but nothing has really helped so far. My symptoms are sore sticky lids, caused, I believe, by dry eye syndrome (which itself was caused by Lasik eye surgery).

Just one question, do you need to wash the eyes with a flannel after using the Wet Ones, to minimise the risk of damaging the eyes? 

I’ll try to pick up some Wet Ones from my chemist today.

I’ll let you know how I get on!

Steve

Dear Steve,

I used the wipes and my friend used a facial scrub with Benzethonium Chloride in it to kill Blepharitis. Honjon, on this site used a hand wipe with Benzalkonium Chloride in it. All three worked. Here is why they work (extreme short form of info). Granted, I looked this information up after I killed it as there were a few who were allergic to the wipes. I have learned a lot.

There are three main types of blepharitis: staphylococcal blepharitis, seborrhoeic blepharitis and meibomian blepharitis. All three types can cause similar symptoms.

Blepharitis has symptoms that can include burning, flaking, crusting, tearing, irritation, itching, redness in eyelid margins and a foreign body sensation .

Staphylococcal blepharitis

This type of blepharitis is thought to be caused by a bacterium (germ) called staphylococcus.

This is why the wipes worked. Benzethonium Chloride and Benzalkonium Chloride are ammonium salt compounds. There are several other ones too. They are called Quats.

Quats are effective in destroying a broad spectrum of harmful microorganisms. They are effective in killing the following microorganisms while cleaning the surfaces upon which they reside – all in one simple step.

Gram negative and gram positive bacteria like salmonella typhi, staphylococcus aureus, streptococcus epidermidis and pseudomonas aeruginosa,

I did not rinse my eyelids after using the wipes. It evidently was part of the reason it worked considering this information on the next line taken from an article on Quats.

 However, even in the case of these relatively easy to kill pathogens quats often require a contact time upwards of 10 minutes to do so.

There are a lot of people who are allergic to shampoos, detergents, fabric softners etc. They should not use these. Notice this point.

Quaternium-15 is the single most often found cause of allergic contact dermatitis of the hands (16..% in 959 cases)

I found this tox report. International Journal of Toxicology -----Benzethonium Chloride and Methylbenzethonium Chloride are quaternary ammonium salts. It is concluded that both compounds are safe at concentrations of 0.5 percent in cosmetics applied to the skin. A maximum concentration of 0.02 percent is safe for cosmetics used in the eye area. (The wipes are .03% and not go in eye.)

I use a warm wash cloth (micro-wave it) in the morning and use eyedrops for lubrication without preservatives. Most have BAK in them.

Look that one up.

Hope this info helps you.

Lynda79

So it sounds like it needs to be Staphylococcal blepharitis, in order for the anti-bacterial wipes to be effective?

I was found staph infection numerous times in my eyes.

So i thought i have an anterior and not the misfunction of the glands...I read few medical articles and found out that these two usually come together....So i decided to try the application of eye bag and massage and it felt good, i think it helps in my case...People dont mention it here very much but some undiagnosed

 and difficult cases are linked with allergies and it can be parasithal as well. So people should eliminate alergy and demodex mite as possible cause.

All the best

Dear Steve,

Not only that one but it does list other ones too. This was not the complete information. Many people with different symptoms ( yellow gunk, oil, itching and scab looking) have started killing it off.

It will not hurt to try if you are not allergic.  

They put BAK (Benzalkonium Chloride) in eye meds as a preservative.

You are not putting it in your eye.

You can google all the information.

I just took, today, the information on which antibiotic will kill it to the Dr.

He is going to get back to me about it soon. He was very interested.

I gave him the detailed information.

That will be the simple way to kill it and the wipes are the cheap way to kill it.

Let me know how you are doing. Most people know in a few days that it is working.

Wish you relief soon.

Lynda79

 

Hello Steve

 

I forgot to mention that wet ones cleaned my eyes from bacteria...i have tiny itching from tine to time...i didnt want to use it for 3 or 4 months..i stopped after one month...and continued usual hygene every night for maintance.

It definetely kills staph bacteria and it is an excellent alternative to antibiotics.I can also say that I personally dont believe in lifetime cure for Bleph...we are sensitive and have to adopt certain routines in order to have control over condition...

Regards

Have been using the Wet Ones for two weeks..see much improvement.  Will continue until the bleph is gone.

Hi Lynda, 

Do wet ones only help the Staph Bleph or can they also cure meibomian blepharitis. I notice you have been very active on these forums and I thank you for that.

10 years ago I got laser eye treatment and around a year later developed multiple styes on upper and lower lids. I was told this was blocked meibodiam glands and had them surgecially removed. My eyes have never been the same since really. Sometimes red but the most frustrating aspect is the inflammation, especially over the lower lids. Over the years I have tried a number of things, namely heat pads to warm the glands followed by massage, belphasol, manuka honey, eye drops, eye drops with manuka honey in and even witch hazel to try and bring down the inflammation.

These last few days I have given your solution a try with wet ones and seen some potential early signs of improvement so fingers crossed. given my background with stye removal and gland disfunction, have you got any further advice or input?

Thanks in advance

Dear Nick,

My daughter used the wipes to kill a stye on her eyelid and my husband had little white bumps and he thought it was due to allergies. Dr said it was Blepharitis so he came home and started on the wipes too. 

Honjon on the top of this page used the wipes and he talked about the oil and not being able to see. He used the UK wipes and they have Benzethonium Chloride in them. Many have said they were harsh.

My problem was itching and that was caused by Staph. The wipes killed it.

It did take over 3 months to kill it but the last couple of months are only 2 times a day and many have had to use them only 2 times a day as they worked.

Hope this helps,

Lynda79

Thanks Lynda. Very much appreciate your response. I have found the wet ones have been a little drying to the lids and caused some redness. I do not believe I am allergic I just feel that I do have sensitive eyes. I will go down to 2-3 times a day and rinse after 10 minutes. I also feel that because I have had this for i years there is a great deal of problem to solve, thus I believe it may get slightly worse before it improves. Importantly I have now stopped wiping my whole eyelid and will only wipe the rim. I have been using the red US ones. do you have any other advice regarding other steps I can take e.g. eye drops, compresses etc. I noticed after doing a 10 minute compress followed by wet one treatment my eyes became more inflamed and red outer rims. I will not do this again. The redness has calmed down and I noticed a lot of gunk this morning. More so than I have had for years. Again this could confirm that things have to get worse before better i.e. residual bleph/bacteria?

Please give me your thoughts on the above when time allows.

Dear Nick,

You may want to stop using heat before using the wipes. You can also use them just 2 times a day. If you want to use heat you can use at a different time of day. Try to look up info on heat affecting Staph and see if it may make it grow. Just a thought.

Hope this helps,

Lynda79

Thanks Lynda,

Will do. Thank you! The improvement is very slight but I am perserving. There is some slight stinging but I am going to continue. To be clear, I have had meibodiam cysts previously removed and my worst symptoms are inflammation around the eyes and my eyes appear thickly rimmed. I believe it is down to blocked meibodiam glands. Do you believe wet ones can assist with this? I really want to tap in to your knowledge given all the cases you have experienced and helped with

Regards,

Dear Nick,

You need to research and see if those cysts are from Staph. I did not have the gland problem. I can suggest that if you get and antibiotic for them and are told to put in the eye you can put directly on the gland opening and rub in. 

I asked the Dr why he didn't tell me to put the antibiotic on my lashes instead of in the eye. He said some gets on them. An online site mentioned putting the antibiotics on the lashes and called it "off label use". That is why I am mentioning this to you. Attack the area directly.

If your skin is sensitive you can cut down to 2 times a day or switch to the tea tree oil that is mentioned on this site too.

Hope this helps,

Lynda79

Hey Lynda,

Your Wet Ones solution has been the best help for me of anything I have used.  Second, is Azasite, an antibiotic drop that gives me great relief. It is very expensive, but worth it.  My issue is that on my right eyelid and under my brow is still greasy.  If I use grease pencil eyeliner or cream eye shadow, it hardly sticks to those areas.  I use extra wipes with the Wet Ones in hopes of decreasing the oilyness there, but it doesn't help much.  Do you or anyone else have this problem?  I would love to know why it is just one eye as both have bleph and dry eye with thickened eyelid rims due to stopped up glands.

Dear Becky,

I used that antibiotic 3 times in the eye but my problem was on the lash area.

You could try putting that antibiotic on the gland itself and rub in that area that is the problem instead of just in the whole eye.

Not sure about the thickened eyelid rims. Perhaps, someone on this site could help with what they use.

You could use eyeshadow powder as a liner instead of a pencil. I used that when I was killing the Blepharitis as an eyeliner so I did not double dip into anything and could use throw away products. Can't hurt to give it a try. i used a dark grey or black one.

Hope this helps you.

Lynda79