Did you know that 78% of people stated that sight is the sense they fear losing the most? Whilst some Eye conditions are heredity, many can be preventable with a healthy lifestyle. Without good vision, our lives can become much smaller. Our independence can be impacted, our ability to enjoy nature in its full glory and many things we take for granted are no longer an option. Here are some tips to keep your eyes tip-top into old age.

Diet

• Ensure you take enough vitamins and minerals to keep your body and eyes healthy. A diet rich in nuts, seeds, legumes, green leafy vegetables and fish can go a long way to keeping your eyes bright and healthy. We wrote a blog post about this already and it even includes a delicious recipe!
• Hydration is very important for your eyes and in particular tear production. Tears aren’t there just produced when you are sad, they perform an important function for lubricating the eyes, washing away dust and debris, and maintaining a healthy ocular surface. When you’re dehydrated, your body prioritises water for vital functions, and tear production can suffer. This leads to dry, irritated eyes.

Lifestyle for healthy eyes

• Reduce screen time if possible. Staring at computer screens all day can leave you feeling like you’ve gone a few rounds with a boxing match – for your eyes, that is. It’s no surprise: studies suggest that over half of regular computer users experience digital eye strain. This translates to dry, irritated eyes, blurry vision, and even headaches.

The culprit? Blinking! We naturally blink about 15 times a minute, but that number plummets when we’re glued to screens. Less blinking means less eye lubrication, leading to that tired, uncomfortable feeling.

The good news is that researchers have proved that using the simple 20-20-20 rule can be game-changing. Every 20 minutes, look away from your screen for 20 seconds at something 20 feet in the distance. This quick break allows your eyes to refocus and rehydrate, leaving you feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the rest of your workday.

• Sun protection. UV rays can damage your eye causing problems like macular degeneration. Sunglasses protect not only your eyes but the skin around them. The skin around the eyes is particularly vulnerable to sun damage. Wearing sunglasses that block UVA and UVB rays all year round can prevent this from happening. Why not reglaze your sunglasses with prescription lenses, that way you’ll be able to wear your sunglasses for every activity outside.
• Stop smoking. Smoking is harmful for your body in many ways and for your eyes, it can lead to loss of sight. Smoking damages blood vessels throughout the body, including the delicate ones that nourish the eyes. This decreased blood flow deprives the eyes of essential oxygen and nutrients needed for optimal function.

In addition, cigarettes contain thousands of harmful chemicals. When these chemicals enter the bloodstream, they can trigger oxidative stress, an imbalance of free radicals and antioxidants in the body. This damages healthy cells, including those in the eyes.

• Keep regular eye check-up appointments. These are essential as the optician will examine the health of the eye and can spot any problems early giving you the best chance of keeping good vision well into your old age.

If you follow these tips, you will be doing the best that you can to keep your eyes healthy and to see the world clearly and vibrantly for years to come!

The post See Clearly, Live Vibrantly: Essential Tips for Healthy Eyes appeared first on Lenses in Glasses.