Ways to Keep Your Eyes in Good Health

Our eyes are apparently windows to our souls, and they tell you everything you need to know about a person, in some people’s view. Whatever you believe about the eyes, keeping them healthy and your eyesight strong is an important part of overall health. Accessing fantastic healthcare options that improve eyesight with acupuncture is an option more and more people are exploring, but what can we do in our day-to-day lives to keep our eyes healthy? Below are some key ideas.

1. Good Diet

As with many aspects of your physical health, it all begins with what you move from your plate into your body. Key ingredients for healthy eyes include omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin C, vitamin E, zinc, and lutein. How can you get these important nutrients? Green leafy vegetables are the easiest way, such as kale and spinach. On top of that, you’ll get your omega-3 fatty acids from oil-rich fish like salmon and tuna.

For vitamins C and E, citrus fruits are the best source, as well as eggs, nuts, beans and protein-rich options. If you like seafood, oysters are a good source of these eye-friendly nutrients, too. If you’re in doubt, you can ask yourself if this is a food that causes the leading cause of blindness in adults, which is type-2 diabetes.

2. Shield Your Eyes from UV

The sun’s ultraviolet rays may deliver a skin tan that you love, but they are bad for you in more ways than they benefit us. Besides being harmful to your skin, they can increase the chances of you getting cataracts, and they can lead to macular degeneration. When shopping for shades, ask the seller which ones will block between 99 and 100 percent of both UVA and UVB rays.

3. Take a Break from Screens

Constant staring at computer and device screens can cause eyestrain, blurred vision, dry eyes, headaches and much worse. If you work in a white-collar job where you’re using a computer for much of your working day, remember to take breaks from the screen whenever you can, and minimise screen exposure in your down time.

A good rule of thumb recommended by some doctors is to use what is called the 20-20-20 rule. This means that every 20 minutes, you look away from the screen you’re using to a point at least 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. This will help reduce eyestrain.

4. Regular Eye Doctor Visits

A lot of health issues relating to the eyes start as unseen and seemingly harmless things that you might never pick up on until you finally see a doctor and they tell you that you have something serious. Regular visits to the eye doctor --- at least once annually --- will help to ensure that any problems are detected and treated well in advance.

Eye doctor visits will also keep a check on how your eyesight is deteriorating. A lot of people go years with worsening eyesight and remain in denial about it, which all the time is impairing their ability to drive safely and do their job properly. The doctor will help to confirm the real condition of your eyesight.

5. Give Up Smoking

If you're currently a smoker, then one of the many reasons to give up now is to protect your eyesight in the long term. Smoking increases your chances of getting cataracts, as well as causing serious damage to your optic nerve. As we say, it’s one of many reasons to quit, so if you’ve quit before but gone back to cigarettes, keep trying.