Lifestyle Choices for Eye Health & Vision
Each of us has a responsibility
to make good lifestyle choices in order to preserve our eye health and vision.
There are a list of some simple, basic actions you can take to maintain your
eyes and sight. Here a few tips…
Have Regular Comprehensive Dilated Eye Exams
Making sure to schedule regular
dilated eye health and vision exams-at intervals your eye doctor recommends- is
the first step to maintaining eye health and good vision. Early detection,
diagnosis and treatment when necessary allows us to find eye diseases,
conditions and problems so that we can address them before they are sight
threatening. Many eye
diseases do not have early warning signs, but signs and symptoms can be
identified during a comprehensive dilated eye exam.
Know Your
Family History of Eye Problems
Many eye health and vision
problems and eye diseases tend to run in families. This suggests that if an eye
disease is present in any family member it may put you at greater risk of that
eye problem. This is particularly the case for eye diseases such as glaucoma
and age related macular degeneration (AMD). Stay abreast of the eye diseases
and conditions as they exist in your family, AND BE SURE TO TELL US ABOUT THEM WHEN YOU COME IN FOR AN EYE EXAM.
Nutrition and Diet Affect Eye Health & Vision
Make sure to pay attention to
what you eat and try to include a steady diet of foods high in important nutrients that support good vision,
such as the following:
- Vegetables: collard greens, bell
peppers, broccoli, tomatoes and dark, leafy greens, such as kale and spinach
- Nuts: sunflower seeds, almonds,
hazelnuts and peanuts
- Fruits: strawberries and
blueberries
- Omega-3
Fatty Acids:
tuna, halibut and salmon
- Beans: chickpeas, kidney beans and
legumes
Watch Your
Weight & Exercise
Being overweight exposes you to a greater risk of diabetes.
In fact there is an epidemic of diabetes in the U.S. today. Diabetic eye
problems include a greater risk of glaucoma, cataracts and sight threatening
diabetic retinopathy. Exercise-even moderate amounts of daily exercise reduce
your risk of developing MANY eye diseases and problems.
Wear Protective
Eyewear
Eye injury prevention is relatively easy-if you wear the
appropriate protective eyewear when taking part in sports or home activities
that expose you to risk. It is estimated that some 90% of eye injuries can be
prevented by taking a minute to review the need for protective eyeglasses
before doing home projects, trimming branches or shrubs, using saws, tool or
weed whackers-and on and on. In addition, when spending time outdoors or near
the water, wear sunglasses designed to block out 99 to 100 percent of the sun’s
UV-A and UV-B rays.
Be smart and be safe.
Stop Smoking
Not only does smoking cause a host of cardiovascular and
systemic vascular problems, but smoking is now recognized as increasing the
risk of cataracts, macular degeneration and, all of which could lead to vision
loss. We also now know that if you do smoke, there is considerable benefit in
stopping!
Avoid Computer
Eyestrain
CRT or video display terminals used for computers are well
known to expose you eye fatigue, headache and more troubling-dry eye problems. When
working on the computer or using a smartphone or tablet, practice the 20-20-20
rule to reduce eyestrain-that is, every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet
away for about 20 seconds. If you have any sensation of dryness, grittiness or
“something in your eyes”, use an eye surface lubricant or eye drop to replenish
your tears.
If you or someone you know would
like to learn more about lifestyle choices to maintain eye health and vision
please schedule an eye exam at Alabama Eye & Cataract Center in Birmingham
by calling 205-930-0930, visiting Alabama Eye & Cataract Center,
Google+ or
www.facebook.com/michelsonlaservision Alabama
Eye & Cataract Center in Birmingham is located at UAB-Highlands, 1201 11th
Avenue S, Suite 501, Birmingham, Alabama 35205 and staffed by UAB Medicine affiliated
ophthalmologists Marc Michelson, M.D. and Tyler Hall, M.D.
