Introduction
Over time, as one grows, there are many changes that take place. Aging of the skin, fading sense of hearing and deterioration of eyesight (eye problems) are just but a few. There are many factors that may cause vision problems and understanding some of the simple DIY remedies, you will be able to prevent such problems from happening.
Many times you have heard people recommending the wearing of hats, eating carrots and taking more of zinc and Lutein nutrients in an effort to reduce or prevent various eye problems. The question, however, is “do these recommendations really work?”
Let’s understand how you can protect your vision and prevent various eye problems.
To start with, taking eye exams as often as possible is quite critical. Such eye conditions like glaucoma are known to progress slowly but, before you even realize, the disease gets to its advanced stage and chances of losing your eyesight increases.
Other than getting regular eye examinations, improving your diet plan among other habits may help in the maintenance of perfect eyesight right through different stages of your life.
Today, there are millions of people across the world suffering visual impairment because of one reason or the other. Among the common eye problems that need immediate attention include glaucoma, cataracts, retinopathy, and macular degeneration.
Over the last two decades, diabetic retinopathy has been reported to have increased by 89% becoming the leading cause of vision loss between the age of 20 and 74. Spotting diabetes in time is critical in slowing down the disease’s progression and its effects where blood vessels, including those feeding the eyes to support the vision, are damaged. The name retinopathy is derived from damages to the retina thus impairing vision.
Macular degeneration, on the other hand, is also another cause of impaired vision in the US. Macular degeneration is simply an eye disease that affects the macula or the retina which are crucial for healthy vision. The disease comes about due to accumulation of yellow deposits beneath the retina thus affecting vision as time goes by.
Without any doubt, taking care of your eyes’ health is one thing you cannot gamble about. Before finally turning to expensive surgeries and medications, the following home remedies may help a great deal;
Acupressure of the eye
Just like acupuncture, you will need to apply some pressure on specific parts of the eye to promote better circulation of blood and healing. The only difference from acupuncture in this is the fact that no needles are used instead the fingers are.
This remedy is so simple in that you can DIY and naturally help improve vision. By targeting your fingers on the various acupressure areas around the eyes, gently massage the areas for around 10 seconds and this will be enough to boost circulation and healing. Thumbs massaging is also another recommended way to help boost the circulation of blood to the eyes.
You can easily perform this remedy on your own and right from the comfort of your home. You can as well manage to do it on a daily basis a few minutes when you are free.
Take vision-friendly diets
As earlier mentioned, some habits and diets play a crucial role in boosting vision. The type of diet you take therefore directly affects your vision. It is for this reason that a diet packed with vegetables rich in nutrients and omega-3 fatty acids is crucial for healthy eyesight.
While trying to understand how omega-3 fatty acids are helpful in supporting healthy vision, a study was carried out by a Harvard medical school which revealed that these nutrients supported the growth of healthy blood vessels which are crucial for proper eyesight. Such nutrients can be found in fish and various types of nuts among other foods.
Other eye-friendly nutrients that you must consider are Vitamins A, B-complex, C, D and E , and beta carotene, antioxidants found in leafy greens, carrots, and berries among other crucial nutrients
Bananas and kales are also reported to provide crucial eyesight nutrients. For instance, kales and spinach among other foods provide the needed antioxidants that are needed for better eyesight.
From various experiments and studies, many researchers have concluded that taking eye-friendly nutrients will help boost contrast sensitivity, sharpness, and clarity. Other highly nutritious foods to include in your diet include corn, green beans, eggs, romaine lettuce, and broccoli among others.
Sunshine colored foods (yellow and orange in color) such as egg yolk and yellow and orange veggies like carrots are a must have if you need to do away with eye problems. These foods are great in preventing the risk of macular degeneration which is known as the leading cause of blindness in the elderly people.
These among other many superfoods for the eye will help prevent or reduce various eye problems.
Perform body and eye exercises
New to you, right? Well, just like the body needs exercises for best performance, so do your eyes. These exercises will be meant to improve focus and concentrationhelping to avoid straining. Aerobic exercises and general physical fitness are crucial in helping you to reduce retinal degeneration as well as glaucoma among other eye conditions.
According to some research findings, it is indicated that exercises and physical fitness positively impact on the ocular perfusion pressure (OPP), which is among the major risk factors of glaucoma.
According to a research conducted to examine the relationship between exercises and OPP, it was observed that physical activity performed 15 years to the examination resulted in a 25% lower risk of OPP.
Physical exercises also help get rid of vision problems in diabetic patients too. The major cause of eyesight loss in diabetics results from changes in the blood vessels in the retina of the eye causing bleeding or leakage of some fluid after the vision.
Regular body workouts on the other hand help to prevent various health conditions like type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease which are among the major risk factors for serious eye problems. It also prevents cases of overweight and obesity which in turn increase inflammation and risks of high blood pressure, diabetes and arterial disease all harmful to eyesight.
Reduce unhealthy habits
It is true that almost all activities performed during the day involve the use of the eyes. Little do we even realize that some these habits could be hurting our eyes?
Use of computers for longer periods of time, smoking tobacco, reading through dim lights, poor quality sleep and wearing glasses whose prescription is not up-to-date are just a few of the common happening in a normal day. All these could be hurting your vision without your knowledge.
With the computer screens, take some time off the screen for at least every twenty minutes or so. Setting the screen some reasonable distance of about 18 inches away from the face and below your eye-level is also crucial. With the glasses, always ensure the prescription is up to date to avoid hurting your vision even further.
Any time you are enjoying reading, do it in a properly lit environment as well as get enough of comfortable night rest after a long day. With tobacco smoking, free radicals are generated which react with the genetic material and membranes of tissues and cells thus damaging the eye. Doing away with smoking is thus the only way out.
Always have your eyes protected
Sunlight rays are great sources of vitamin D for the skin. However, some rays may greatly damage your eyesight as a result of the ultraviolet rays. Wearing sunglasses is, therefore, necessary to prevent these effects and damages to the eyes. It is recommendable to have sunglasses that have 99-100 UV protection as well as having larger lenses to be able to protect against the harmful ultraviolet rays.
Conclusion
In conclusion, protecting your vision is quite critical to everyone. Besides having regular checkups and treatment options prescribed by a professional specialist, it is worth considering some of the described home remedies that will improve vision and avoid various eye problems.
