Want to enjoy perfect portions to polish your peepers? Well, I’ve got some useful tips and recipes that will help give you holographic vision and laser-powered retinas! I’m kidding. But we’ll get you pretty darn close! Now, if there’s one thing that’s critically important to maintain as you age, it’s your eyesight. With the right foods and supplements combined with some eye-strengthening exercises, you’ll be on track to keep your future looking bright . . . and clear!
I don’t remember much of my life without lenses. I’ve worn glasses since I was five years old and contact lenses since age 14. To say the least, they’ve been interesting filters through which I view the world. I’ve sometimes felt a lot of anger and confusion as to why my eyesight declined at such a young age and why nobody seems to know the reason. I’ve yet to see any substantive, clinical research studies regarding the causes of macular degeneration or nearsightedness. Furthermore, modern science has yet to find a reversal or cure. On another note, it’s also amusingly ironic how the script can get flipped in life: I went from being relentlessly teased in my teens for having “four eyes” to being publicly adored as a frame-wearing, culinary Casanova in my 30s. Go figure. Social commentary and style preferences aside, my vision has definitely changed as I’ve gotten older, and my prescription changes slightly about every ten years. As I age, I’m more mindful than ever about my dietary choices and making sure I’m setting myself up for a lifetime of good eyesight.
Can you relate? Do you experience issues with your vision, or do you currently wear corrective lenses of some kind? I wouldn’t be surprised. It looks like eyesight issues are pretty common for a whole lot of folks in the U.S., with many people needing corrective aids later in life:
- Americans spend more than $400 million on reading glasses each year
- People typically start needing higher prescription lenses in their 40s
- By 55 or 60, many people find that they need reading glasses in two strengths
Besides getting a boost from glasses or contact lenses, there’s an abundance of perfect foods and nutrients to keep your eyesight strong (or prevent it from getting worse). Essential antioxidants like carotenoids are fantastic for maintaining sharp eyesight. You can find them in brightly colored foods like carrots, squash, pumpkin, gourds, and other nutritious root vegetables. Nature gives you some pretty easy-to-follow clues regarding which foods contain carotenoids, as indicated by orange, yellow, or red pigmentation.
Eye Love These Nutrients and Foods!
Thanks to Bugs Bunny, most of us think of carrots as the best food for helping our eyesight, with their abundance of beta-carotene and vitamin A. But there are other key nutrients and foods that are just as important for keeping your eyesight sharp as you age.
Vitamins C, A, and E, along with minerals such as copper and zinc, are essential to eyesight. Antioxidants, including lutein, zeaxanthin, and beta-carotene, as mentioned, protect the macula, a small area of the eye near the retina, from sun damage. You can get these awesome antioxidants from dark, leafy greens, yellow peppers, pumpkin, sweet potatoes and carrots. Notice any more color patterns happenin’ here? Current research shows that consuming yellow and green vegetables can help prevent age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness.
Foods rich in sulfur, cysteine, and lecithin help protect the lens of your eye from cataract formation, which is the clouding of your lenses. Excellent choices to prevent this include garlic, onions, shallots, and capers.
Anthocyanin-rich blueberries, blackberries, grapes, and goji berries have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that can help improve your vision. And DHA, an essential fatty acid found in seaweed and ocean microalgae, provides structural support to the cell membranes, boosting eye health.
As always, it’s best to get these nutrients from whole-food sources, as these foods may contain many other macronutrients and phytochemicals that haven’t been discovered by research yet.
Visionary Ways to Strengthen Your Eyes
With the current pace of modern life and the technology that we have at our disposal, we’re constantly staring at very large amounts of text and images on computers, televisions, and smartphones. Staring at these types of screens for long periods can lead to eye fatigue and an increase in age-related eye problems. But we’re not going to stop using our smartphones anytime soon. So what are we supposed to do?
Diminished eyesight does not have to be an inevitable part of a long life. In addition to eating a nutrient-dense diet, there are exercises you can do to sharpen your vision so you can see your way to a future of joyful and healthy longevity.
These simple daily exercises will help you maintain optimal vision and may also keep eye floaters at bay. You can perform these exercises first thing in the morning, before bedtime, or anytime your eyes feel fatigued.
Warm your eyes: Rub your palms together to create heat, and then place them against your eyes for 5 seconds. Repeat this 3 times.
Roll your eyes: Start by looking up and then slowly circle 10 times clockwise and 10 times counterclockwise.
Focus: Hold a pen at arm’s length, focus your eyes on it, and slowly bring the pen closer until it’s about 6 inches away from your nose. Then slowly move it back, keeping your eyes focused on the pen, 10 times in all.
Massage your temples: Using your thumb knuckles, massage your temples in small circles, 20 times in one direction and 20 in the other. Repeat the same actions above the midpoint of the eyebrows at the forehead, then below the eyes on both sides of the bridge of the nose.
Take a mini nap: Put your head back, close your eyes, and relax for 10 to 26 minutes. In addition to the relaxation benefits, a 1995 NASA study that found a “26-
The Importance of Rest and Sleep
It goes without saying that we need to take a break from technology every once in a while. How you do this depends on your personal lifestyle, career, family, and other commitments—some of us need to be “on call” more than others. If your schedule allows it, give your eyes a ten-minute break once an hour during your workday. Whether it’s a quick, five-minute break every half hour or a daylong electronic Sabbath, your eyes will thank you!
In addition to these much-needed breaks, getting enough sleep is essential for eye health. Sleep allows your eyes to fully rest, repair, and recover. Insufficient sleep may weaken your vision, so shoot for eight hours of sound sleep a night. You need to be a good sleeper for strong peepers!
Staving Off Macular Degeneration and Cataracts
Macular degeneration comes in two forms, wet and dry, and occurs when the central part of the retina is damaged due to deterioration of retinal cells (dry form) or to leaking blood vessels in or under the retina (wet form). This degeneration, as mentioned, may be slowed by diets high in antioxidants such as vitamin C and carotenoids. A study by the National Institutes of Health published in the Journal of the American Medical Association linked overall macular health with a high lutein content in the eye. Lutein and its related compound, zeaxanthin, are found in high concentrations in the center of the retina. These compounds contribute to the macular pigment, which helps protect the eye against harsh light. In a study at the University of Florida, Department of Ophthalmology, it was shown that taking 20 milligrams of lutein daily brings the amount of pigment to normal levels within 120 days, though taking a higher dosage does not significantly affect the levels in the eye.
The clouding of the lens, typical of cataracts, may be related to exposure to sunlight and the accompanying oxidation process. As with macular degeneration, this process appears to be slowed by a diet rich in antioxidants, especially vitamin C. The key vitamins for both conditions appear to be vitamin C, folic acid, selenium, and zinc. These are found in leafy, green vegetables, carrots, citrus fruits, and sweet melons. Spinach, kale, and collard greens, which provide lutein and zeaxanthin, seem to be particularly beneficial for the macula. Caution should be exercised regarding three antioxidants: vitamin A, beta-carotene, and vitamin E. Vitamin A in excess of 5,000 units has been linked with osteoporosis. Beta-carotene has been associated with lung cancer in smokers. And finally, vitamin E in excess of 400 units has been linked with excessive blood thinning. Patients who are on medications such as coumadin or aspirin should be particularly cautious about their vitamin E dosage.
Knockout Nutrients for Long-Term Eye Health
If you are at serious risk for age-related macular degeneration, there are special supplements that may help slow it or keep it from getting worse. They are called AREDS, named after the age-related eye disease studies that tested and fine-tuned the formula. These supplements combine high doses of nutrients in some of the foods that were mentioned earlier: vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene, vitamin A, zinc, and copper. The newest version of these supplements, called AREDS 2, is especially good if you get very little lutein and zeaxanthin in food. It’s also safe if you’re a smoker or recently quit, because it doesn’t have beta-carotene in it. You can buy AREDS 2 formula supplements over the counter, but talk to your eye doctor first. Some people shouldn’t take high doses of antioxidants for various health reasons.
Experts say it’s hard to get the same high levels of nutrients in the AREDS 2 supplement from food alone. Monica L. Monica, M.D., Ph.D., a clinical spokeswoman for the American Academy of Ophthalmology, says to avoid a do-it-yourself approach like taking extra vitamin C or E, because the specific AREDS combination has been known to work.
Important Lifestyle Changes
While vitamins can be obtained by taking natural supplements, I believe that you should get as many of these nutrients you can through food. A diet high in fresh, organic fruits and vegetables and low in saturated fat, trans fats, and refined sugar will not only support your eyesight but also your overall level of health and vitality. Although increasing your intake of antioxidants will probably not restore vision that’s already lost, it may help to slow the progress of degeneration.
Remember: good nutrition and vitality are lifelong goals. Don’t wait until you develop an eye problem or other health concern to make changes in your lifestyle. Being proactive and making well-informed nutritional choices goes a long way with maintaining your eyesight and your overall state of well-being!
