Tips To Maintain a Healthy Vision

Don’t strain your eyes:

             Activities like watching TV or staring at a computer screen have the potential to strain your eyes if you do them for too long. When we stare, our blink rate goes down from 10 times a minute to 2 or 3 times a minute. It helps to change your focus from time to time- 

a good way to maintain a healthy vision is to look away from the TV for a few seconds before resuming your program. If your eyes start to feel dry or irritated while watching TV or using a computer, use artificial teardrops to add back some moisture.
Lowering the brightness level of your computer's monitor can help your eyes to relax. Don't lower it so much that you have trouble seeing, and avoid positioning your monitor so there are reflections.

Staring at a computer screen can cause:

• Eyestrain
• Blurry vision
• Difficulty focusing at a distance
• Dry eyes
• Headaches
• Neck, back, and shoulder pain

Know your family’s eye health history:

             Talk to your family members about their eye health history. It’s important to know if anyone has been diagnosed with a disease or condition since many are hereditary. This will help to determine if you are at higher risk for developing an eye disease or condition.

Feed Your Eyes:

            Protecting your eyes starts with the food on your plate. Studies have shown that nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids, zinc, and vitamins C and E may help ward off age-related vision problems such as cataracts. Regularly eating these foods can help lead to good eye health:

• Green, leafy vegetables such as spinach.
• Salmon, tuna, and other oily fish
• Eggs, nuts, beans, and other non-meat protein sources
• Oranges and other citrus fruits or juices

Eating a well-balanced diet also helps you maintain a healthy weight, which makes you less likely to get obesity-related diseases such as type 2 diabetes which in most cases is the leading cause of blindness in adults.

Stay Hydrated:

             The average human body is made up of about 60% water, sometimes more. If your eyes are often dry, tired and blurry, try increasing your water intake. In addition, drinking plenty of water is important for your whole body.

Exercise Your Eyes:

                 These simple exercises will help you maintain optimal vision and may also keep those annoying eye floaters at bay. Perform these exercises first thing in the morning, before bedtime, or any time your eyes feel fatigued. Make sure that your hands are clean and that your mood is relaxed. Commit to daily practice and you may just see better results within one month.

• Warm your eyes. Rub your palms together to create heat, and then place them against your eyes for five seconds. Repeat this three 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 mid-point 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 3 minutes.

 

Quit smoking or never start:

            Smoking is as bad for your eyes as it is for the rest of your body. Research has linked smoking to an increased risk of developing age-related macular degeneration, cataract, and optic nerve damage, all of which can lead to blindness.

Clean your hands and your contact lenses—properly:

         To avoid the risk of infection, always wash your hands thoroughly before putting in or taking out your contact lenses. Make sure to disinfect contact lenses as instructed and replace them as appropriate.

Be cool and wear your shades:

         Sunglasses are a great fashion accessory, but their most important job is to protect your eyes from the sun’s ultraviolet rays. When purchasing sunglasses, look for ones that block out 99 to 100 percent of both UV-A and UV-B radiation. If you wear contact lenses, some offer UV protection. It's still a good idea to wear sunglasses for more protection. Amazingly enough, you can gain eyesight improvement, and look great - all at the same time!

Saturday, August 17, 2013