Candor

Montreal-based, German-manufactured, and with a principle of the list of things in your eye drops should be short. No preservatives, no phosphates, no fragrances, nothing stripping the natural oils your lids actually need.

Clean as a principle

There are a lot of "preservative-free" claims that are technically true and practically meaningless. Candor's is preservative-free, phosphate-free, fragrance-free, soap-free in the lid care. The formula list is engineered around what you don't put into the bottle as much as what you do.

HYLO drops

HYLO comes in five bottles, one lid cleanser, one overnight ointment. Start with regular HYLO unless you know you need something heavier.

• HYLO ($45.99, 0.10% HA). The daily user.
• HYLO Gel ($57.99, 0.20% HA). Heavier, for post-surgical recovery and overnight use.
• HYLO Dual ($54.99, 0.05% HA + Ectoine). Best for allergy dry eye in the spring.
• HYLO Dual Intense ($58.99, 0.20% HA + Ectoine). The heaviest concentration plus allergen shield.
• HYLO-Dual mini ($27.99). Same Dual formula, smaller bottle. Good for a purse, a travel bag, or trying Ectoine without committing to the full size.

Why Ectoine?

Ectoine is Candor's one genuinely differentiated ingredient. Bacteria that live in salt flats produce it to survive extreme salt and dehydration. In your eye it binds water around the surface cells and deflects allergens and airborne irritants before they hit the cornea.

Phosphate-free

Something most "preservative-free" brands don't mention is that they still have phosphates in the buffer. Which is fine for most people, but if you're post-surgery, have severe dry eye, or are on certain medications, phosphates can crystallise on the cornea and form calcium deposits. Rare, but European ophthalmologists tend to avoid them in those cases. HYLO uses a citrate buffer instead. We get this question most often from people handed a prescription for preservative-free drops after cataract surgery.

OCUNOX, the overnight ointment

OCUNOX ($19.99) is a vitamin A-based ointment built to sit on your eye through the night without irritating. For severe dry eye, or for anyone who wakes up with stuck-together eyelids, it's the one that actually works. It's not a drop. Don't expect it to feel like a drop.

CALMO lid care

Lid hygiene is the part most dry eye treatments ignore. CALMO Lid Care ($39.90 full size, $20.99 for the 30ml travel version) is a liposomal foam. Soap-free, fragrance-free, it's what we recommend to patients with blepharitis, or sensitive skin.

When to book an exam

Eye drops manage symptoms, they don't diagnose. If any of these apply, book to see your local optometrist instead of buying another product:

• Pain, not dryness or grittiness.
• Vision changes that don't clear after a blink.
• Sudden flare-up with no trigger you can point to.
• Drops that used to work, now don't.

Dry eye workups are covered under most provincial plans once a year.

About Candor Vision

Candor Vision is a Montreal-based division of CandorPharm Inc. They formulate preservative-free eye care products, manufactured through partnerships with German pharmaceutical makers. Family-held, focused on sensitive-eye and skin-compatible formulations, and one of the few Canadian-headquartered eye drop brands carried internationally.