Why won’t my eye stop watering? Yes – it could be early hay fever

A streaming eye is pretty annoying, so what could be causing it? Imy Brighty-Potts asks the experts.

Why won’t my eye stop streaming? (Alamy/PA)

If you have an eye that just won’t quit watering, you may be desperately trying to work out what is wrong and how to make it stop.

With spring around the corner, hay fever may be your first thought – despite the fact warmer weather still feels a way away. So, what’s going on?

“There are many potential causes of a leaky eye, including allergy, infection, a scratch to the cornea or something in the eye, eyelid problems, blocked tear duct, dry eye or Bell’s Palsy, which causes temporary weakness on one side of the face,” says Dr Clare O’Donnell, optometrist and Head of Optometry at specialist eye hospital group Optegra (optegra.com).