A pharmacist has said that frequently rubbing your eyes can lead to more serious eye issues. Symptoms of hay fever, which is an allergic reaction to pollen, include sneezing, coughing, rashes, blocked noses, headaches, and itchy red eyes meaning it is natural to want to touch and rub your eyes in moments of discomfort. But community pharmacist Sultan Dajani, from eyecare brand Golden Eye, told The Mirror how allergies can cause more serious eye problems. Dajani said: "When we encounter an allergen, either from inhaling, swallowing, or simply by the skin coming into contact with it, the body goes into fighting mode and the immune system overreacts to the substance. "A protein known as IgE is produced to go after the allergen, and a chemical called histamine is released into the blood – and it is this that creates the symptoms commonly experienced. "So, in fact when we have these types of symptoms the body is functioning and doing its job to get rid of the allergen. "Though we need our body to react in this way, the symptoms themselves can really affect our general wellbeing, lowering our immune system and interrupting everyday activities." Dajani explained that frequently touching our eyes can open up the possibility for further eye problems or infections such as styes, conjunctivitis, or blepharitis. "Our hands come into contact with most things, from people to surfaces, making it easy to transfer bacteria and germs to our faces – and if we are reaching for our eyes, it’s easy for a simple rubbing of the eyes to develop into something else." Issues that could arise from this include a stye, which is a swollen lump on the eyelid or near the eyelashes. Dajani explained: "People tend to get more styes during allergy season. Allergies are known risk factors for styes. With the experience of itchy eye symptoms it can feel impossible not to rub them. One problem that could also be related to rubbing eyes is conjunctivitis, which is an infection of the eye often caused by a virus or bacteria. Blepharitis, when oil glands near the base of the eyelashes become clogged, leading to irritation and redness of the eyes, can also be triggered by continuous touching or rubbing of the eyes, Dajani said. Read More Why do we get hay fever and what are the symptoms? Should I keep my windows closed or open in hot weather? What is Stiff Person Syndrome? Signs and symptoms of Celine Dion’s incurable condition The symptoms of hay fever in adults explained 7 tips and tricks for hay fever relief Bear Grylls urges parents to let their children ‘set own rules’ on social media usage

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The new Formula 1 season is here - and that means F1 Fantasy is back! The game will see millions of motor sport fans pick their fantasy selection of drivers for an imaginary $100m budget. FOLLOW LIVE: F1 qualifying at the Monaco Grand Prix - who will clinch pole position? F1 Fantasy began five years ago and it has grown rapidly in popularity, in line with F1’s rise in popularity. The 2023 season will reward those players who are able to spot the early trends as the new season takes shape. See below for all the rules and top tips: How to play F1 Fantasy 2023 Each player gets to pick five drivers and two constructors (up from one in 2022) ahead of the first race of the season in Bahrain, spending a budget of $100m. They also pick a weekly ‘DRS Boost’ whose points are doubled – and new for 2023, any driver in your team can be given the DRS boost. There are also chips available to power up your team, 6 in total: Autopilot, Extra DRS boost, No Negative, Wildcard, Limitless and Final Fix. Max Verstappen is the most expensive driver at $27.4m, with Lewis Hamilton second on $23.8m and Charles Leclerc on $21.2m. As for the Constructors, Red Bull are $27.7m, Mercedes $25.1m and Ferrari $22.2m. Players can make up to two transfers to their team per week, up until the start of qualifying. More than 2 transfers carries a 4 point penalty per additional transfer - similar to Fantasy Premier League. F1 Fantasy tips (pre-Monaco) Let’s not mess about: get Fernando Alonso on your team! The two-time world champion, for Aston Martin, who has finished third in four out of the five races, is still something of a steal at $9.2m. Elsewhere, Nico Hulkenberg is a cheap option at $3.9m while Lance Stroll is also not a bad bet at $7.7m. It’s still hard to look beyond picking Max Verstappen ($27.4m), but Carlos Sainz is not a bad bet for your second-most expensive driver - at $17.2m. Similarly, Aston Martin are an obvious Constructors option at this point at $7.0m alongside one of the big boys. The deadline to make changes to your team is Monaco qualifying at 3pm (BST) on Saturday afternoon *** One key to success in Fantasy F1 is riding the price waves and increasing the value of your team. You can do this by identifying the best value picks each week, and also by buying and selling strategically - so buy a successful driver at the end of a race on Sunday and sell him on later the following week for a profit. It’s worth biding your time when it comes to making your final substitutions, however. Practice on Friday will generally reveal plenty about what go down in qualifying, so waiting as long as possible to soak up information will help in making the right decisions each week. Given the budgetary restrictions, and the fact that most players will have some combination of Hamilton, Verstappen, Mercedes or Red Bull, the area to get a jump on the rest is in the midfield pack. Will Ferrari toppple Red Bull? Can McLaren top the midfield? And what about Alpine? How does the scoring work? Qualifying: Pole position (first place) 10 pts 2nd place 9 pts 3rd place 8 pts 4th place 7 pts 5th place 6 pts 6th place 5 pts 7th place 4 pts 8th place 3 pts 9th place 2 pts 10th place 1 pt No time set -5 pts Disqualification from qualifying -15 pts Constructors’ in qualifying Neither driver reaches Q2 -1 pt One driver reaches Q2 1 pt Both drivers reach Q2 3 pts One driver reaches Q3 5 pts Both drivers reach Q3 10 pts Race: 1st Place 25 pts 2nd place 18 pts 3rd place 15 pts 4th place 12 pts 5th place 10 pts 6th place 8 pts 7th place 6 pts 8th place 4 pts 9th place 2 pts 10th place 1 pt 11th-20th place 0 pts DNF/Not classified -20 points Disqualified -25 points Extras Positions Gained 1 pt per position Positions lost -1 point per position Overtakes made 1 pt per overtake Fastest lap 10 points Driver of the Day 10 points Constructors’ in race Fastest pitstop 10 points 2nd fastest pitstop 5 points 3rd fastest pitstop 3 pts Read More F1 Monaco Grand Prix LIVE: Qualifying updates and FP3 results after Lewis Hamilton crash F1 2023 season predictions: World champion, surprise star, best race and more Guenther Steiner interview: What makes star of Drive to Survive tick? F1 Monaco Grand Prix LIVE: Qualifying latest updates and times Monaco GP unpredictability offers best chance yet of end to Red Bull supremacy Max Verstappen struggles as Carlos Sainz goes fastest in Monaco opening practice

Celebrity adventurer and chief scout Bear Grylls has said that children need to learn to “police” themselves and manage their own time on social media. Speaking on stage at the annual literature event Hay Festival in Wales, Grylls said that children should learn to self-regulate how much they use the internet, and how they use it. His comments were made after a child in the audience asked for his thoughts on the power of social media. “Social media can be brilliant, it really can,” he said, via The Times. “The brilliant side of it is that it connects us, and you can learn stuff so fast and you can have fun and it’s brilliant entertainment.” He continued: “The key, though, is not letting it control you. You control it. So you be in charge.” The celebrity adventurer warned the audience against permitting social media to “erode you”. He said: “If I’m on it all day, that’s going to erode your heart a bit.” Grylls added that he and his wife, Shara Grylls, did not set rules how long their three sons – Jesse, 19, Marmaduke, 17, and Huckleberry, 14 – are allowed to spend on social media. “I say ‘Set your rules’,” he said, adding: “You’re in charge because after you leave school nobody’s going to be policing it for you.” “You’ll have to police your own life. That might be eating healthy, or going to the gym, or if somebody treats you badly in a relationship then having some boundaries and saying: ‘No – I’m not going to let you’. You’ve got to police yourself with social media as well.” The Man Vs Wild star added that he is concerned that children are sometimes “lost” in the world of their smartphones, and encouraged parents to teach their children “practical skills” because they may not be equipped later in life. “I meet many big, strapping men who will say to me: ‘I really want to learn how to tie this simple knot – I feel a bit inadequate that I can’t tie the roof rack on properly,’” he explained. Read More Mother hit with deluge of abuse for taking toddler’s packed lunch to a restaurant Nick Cave says he was ‘extremely bored’ at King Charles’s coronation Ivy walls, gilded sofas and one very diva plaque: Inside Tina Turner’s ‘cartoon palace’ in Switzerland

Lewis Hamilton crashed into the barriers to bring third practice to an abrupt end at the Monaco Grand Prix. The seven-time world champion lost control of his revamped Mercedes through the right-hander Mirabeau and ended up in the wall. Hamilton sustained front suspension damage in the low-speed accident with his Mercedes team now facing a race against time to repair his car for qualifying at 4pm local time (3pm UK). “Sorry about that, mate,” said Hamilton on the radio, shortly before trudging away from his broken machine with his hands behind his back. “No worries, we will sort it,” replied Hamilton’s race engineer Peter Bonnington. Hamilton was running in eighth place before he crashed out with just five minutes remaining. The 38-year-old had set the fastest first sector of the session before hitting the wall. It meant Max Verstappen topped the timesheets heading into qualifying on Saturday, with Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez second. Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll was third. Read More F1 Monaco Grand Prix LIVE: Qualifying updates and FP3 results after Lewis Hamilton crash What time is F1 qualifying today at the Monaco Grand Prix? Lewis Hamilton has shut the door on Ferrari – will he come to regret it?

Lewis Hamilton crashed out of final practice for the Monaco Grand Prix. The seven-time world champion lost control of his Mercedes through the right-hander Mirabeau and ended up in the wall. Hamilton sustained front suspension damage in the low-speed accident with his Mercedes team now facing a race against time to repair his car for qualifying at 4pm local time (3pm UK). “Sorry about that, mate,” said Hamilton on the radio, shortly before trudging away from his broken machine with his hands behind his back. “No worries, we will sort it,” replied Hamilton’s race engineer Peter Bonnington. Hamilton was running in eighth place before he crashed out with just five minutes remaining. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Formula 1 returns to one of its most famous races - the Monaco Grand Prix - after the unfortunate cancellation of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, with a crucial qualifying session to be held this afternoon. F1 was forced to cancel the Imola race weekend due to adverse weather and flooding in the region, with the event at this stage unlikely to be rescheduled amid the congested 2023 calendar. Yet teams and drivers will now turn their attention to the tight twists and turns of the world-renowned Circuit de Monaco for the next round of the season. PREVIEW: Monaco Grand Prix offers best chance yet of end to Red Bull supremacy Red Bull’s Sergio Perez won last year’s race in wet conditions, with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in second and Max Verstappen third. Hometown favourite Charles Leclerc has never been on the podium at his home race, while Mercedes will be eyeing improvements as they introduce upgrades to Lewis Hamilton’s and George Russell’s cars. Carlos Sainz was quickest in first practice on Friday with Max Verstappen top of the timesheets in FP2. Follow F1 qualifying live with The Independent - FP3 started at 11:30am before qualifying at 3pm (BST) Read More Monaco Grand Prix offers best chance yet of end to Red Bull supremacy Lewis Hamilton reveals impact of Mercedes updates in Monaco Lewis Hamilton has shut the door on Ferrari – will he come to regret it?