A healthy diet is one of the best ways to avoid a series of vision-related problems. From carrots to green leafy vegetables and juicy fruits, there are several easily available items that can be included in the daily diet to improve the health of your eyes
Apart from fuelling your body with its daily requirements of energy, a healthy diet also plays a pivotal role in maintaining healthy eyes. Eating healthy is a habit that, if taught at the right age, ends up becoming a sure-shot way to avoid a series of health problems including a lot of serious ones that tend to take a toll on your vision.
Today, millions of people across the globe are affected by problems caused due to glaucoma, macular degeneration, blepharitis, cataracts, etc., that tend to affect vision as one’s age progresses. But, eating a healthy diet is one of the easiest ways to minimise these risks.
A lot has been written on exercises that are good for the eyes, but which foods contribute to eye health? Here is a brief preview of foods that you must include in your daily diet in order to improve the health of your eyesight and maintain them in the long run.
A Carrot A Day Keeps Eye Problems At Bay
Carrots, like other orange-coloured fruits and vegetables, improve eye health and protect vision. Loaded with a series of important vitamins and minerals, carrot is the iconic food item that tops the list when it comes to eating for a healthy eyesight. Carrot gets its orange hue from beta-carotene, a type of vitamin A, present in it. This vitamin is extremely important for the smooth functioning of the retina and therefore should be included in your daily diet as well. You may eat raw carrots or use them generously to prepare one of the dishes in your everyday meal. Carrots are rich in antioxidants as well. So, eating them will help in maintaining that youthful glow in the long run.
For those who don’t like carrots, you can also try papaya and other fruits in order to supplement your daily requirements of vitamin A to safeguard the health of your vision.
Green Leafy Vegetables Will Help You See Clearer
Offer green leafy vegetables to a kid and he will most likely make a face. Most adults too do not have a liking for them. However, this is a mistake considering the huge amount of nutrition present in these vegetables that tends to get excluded from their diet. Packed with lutein and zeaxanthin, green leafy veggies may not taste so delicious,
but are extremely reliable when it comes to lowering the risk of developing macular degeneration and cataracts in the eye.
Boil Eggs For A Healthy Eyesight
Over the years, eggs have emerged as a popular choice when it comes to planning a nutritious diet. Apart from being rich in vitamin A, lutein and zeaxanthin, egg yolks are also a great source of zinc that is known to be an excellent element when it comes to reducing the risk of developing macular degeneration in the eye. From boiled eggs to the all-time favourite sunny side up, eggs in any form are a vital source of nutrition for the eye and help in maintaining the overall healthiness of your vision.
Green Peppers Are Good
In addition to being used as a pizza topping, consuming green peppers, or capsicums as they are popularly known, is extremely important to maintain the health of your eyes as well. Being amongst the few food items that come with zero calories, capsicums are loaded with vitamin A and beta-carotene that acts as a preventive medicine for macular degeneration.
Crunchy Almonds For Better Eyes
Rich in vitamin E, almonds help slow down macular degeneration. One handful of this wonder food provides about half your daily requirement of vitamin E. Almonds are best consumed by soaking them in water overnight.
This helps unlock more health benefits and makes it easier to digest them.
Dig Into Delicious Fish For Healthy Eyes
Mackerel, trout, salmon or tuna, all fish are rich in DHA, a type of fatty acid that is also present in your retina. Low level of this fatty acid is linked to dry eye syndrome. Including fatty fish items and other variants of oily fish in your everyday diet can help reduce the risk of several eye-related disorders caused due to macular degeneration over a period of time.
Citrus Fruits And Berries Improve Sight
From oranges to lemons, all types of citrus fruits are really good for the eye as well as the general health and well-being of the body. Rich in vitamin C, these fruits are also helpful in minimising the risk caused due to macular degeneration of the eye. Additionally, these juicy fruits also contribute towards reducing the risk of developing cataract as your age progresses. Even berries are known to be as equally beneficial as citrus fruits for improving eyesight.
Tasty Chocolates Are Healthy For Eyes As Well
Chocolates are a hot favourite among people across all age groups. Those with a sweet tooth can rarely resist the temptation of sinking their teeth into a chocolate bar. However, what many of us still do not know is that chocolates are healthy for the eyes as well. Yes! Eating small amounts of dark chocolate on a regular basis is a simple and sure-shot way of investing in the health of your eyes. Dark chocolates are rich in flavonoids that work wonderfully when it comes to preserving the health and elasticity of the blood vessels in your eye.
Adapt To A Healthy Lifestyle
Eating healthy is just one of the elements that help in improving as well as maintaining your vision. You also need to ensure that the healthy diet is supported by an equally healthy lifestyle which includes restricting the abuse due to alcohol as well as smoking.
Apart from these basic precautions, you will also need to invest in proper eyewear that helps in protecting your eyes from being damaged due to excessive exposure to the external environment. From simple sunglasses that act as a protective shield and minimise the damage caused due to UV rays exposure to protective eye gear designed exclusively for people working in a risky environment, ensure that you have the right type of accessories when it comes to safeguarding your vision. Investing in good eyewear and eye care products is an extremely important step that aids in improving the vision of an individual.
Even small steps like positioning your computer screen in the right way to minimise the strain on your eyes can go a long way in securing your vision. Avoid looking at the computer screen for extensive durations of time at a stretch. Instead, take a 15 minute break after every two hours and give your eyes a chance to relax.
For those who wear glasses or contact lenses, it is extremely important to ensure that your prescription is up-to-date. All you need to do is get your eyes checked at regular intervals, eat healthy and change your eye glasses, whenever required.
