Blepharitis
I have chronic blepharitis which has been unsuccessfully treated with numerous antibiotic ointments and drops, including steroids. Scrubbing my eyelids daily with diluted baby shampoo has helped but there must be something more scientific I can do?
Scrubbing the eyes sounds painful - especially since what you are trying to tackle is an inflammation of the outer edges of the eyelids. Presumably, you are using the diluted baby shampoo to keep the area free from infection and to remove the sticky glue-like discharge that is a symptom of this condition when you have an outbreak.
A better solution would be to use one of the herbal remedies traditionally used for eye problems. Eyebright, as its name suggests is one; another and the one I use for eye infections is Goldenseal. Make a herbal tea with the herb of your choice, allow to cool and then use a piece of sterile cotton to make a clean compress which you apply to the affected area for 15 minutes. After this, make a fresh compress to clean away any resulting debris. Since you are dealing with infection, only use each compress once and always make sure you hands are clean before touching the eye.
Recurrent infections are always a sign that the immune system is compromised. One of the best-selling herbal remedies used to rebuild your defences is echinacea - a plant that is native to North America but which I have growing very successfully in my own herb garden here. One of the ways it has been shown to help the body resist infection is by preventing the formation of an enzyme called hyaluronidase which can otherwise destroy the natural barriers between healthy tissue and the outside invaders or pathogens responsible for inflammation and disease.
*All the herbs recommended here are widely on sale in good high street health stores