4 Easy Ways to Keep Your Eyes Healthy in 2018

The benefits of a healthy lifestyle for your eyes is often overlooked – we all take our eyes for granted sometimes. It’s easy to assume that, as long as you can see clearly, your eyes aren’t in need of a helping hand. However, there are a few simple habits you can pick up to help preserve not only your vision, but the health of your eyes too.

 

You may well have been caught up in the digital realm of a smartphone, computer, and television for who knows how long! Keeping in touch with distant family, catching up on your favourite TV series, answering the emails that have built up in your inbox… it’s easily done. Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS) is eye strain caused by spending too long looking at a screen, and can cause symptoms such as dry eyes, headaches and blurred vision.

We recommend you follow a 20/20/20 rule: every 20 minutes, focus on something 20 metres away, for 20 seconds. If you can try to blink 20 times too, even better – we blink 66% less when using digital devices, which reduces the moisture in our eyes causing them to become itchy and red.

It’s no mystery that maintaining a healthy diet improves every aspect of your wellbeing, so it goes without saying your eyes will benefit from this too.

Leafy greens and eggs are high in lutein and zeaxanthin and are proven to lower the risk of conditions such as Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of sight loss in the UK. Omega-3 found in fish can also slow down AMD as well as keeping tears healthy and plentiful, preventing dry, itchy eyes.

Early research also shows that Vitamin C and Vitamin E can help prevent the development of cataracts, so a diet full of berries, citrus fruit and nuts might just save you needing surgery in the future.

 

With the seemingly endless dark days of winter, it’s easy to think your eyes are safe from the harmful effects of UV rays. In reality, UV light is still prominent even on overcast days. Bright sunlight can be reflected off wet roads and snow as well, so don’t pack the sunglasses away until Spring.

Damage to your eyes caused by UV light can increase the risk of cataracts and AMD. With an amazing choice of prescription and non-prescription sunglasses to choose from today, there’s no reason why you can’t protect your eyes (and look great!) all year round.

 

Eye tests aren’t just about how well you can see. Getting your eyes examined regularly is crucial for ensuring your eyes stay healthy, to help prevent any problems occurring with your sight in the future. The Leightons Ultimate Eye Exam includes OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography) scanning, which can help detect sight-threatening conditions including glaucoma, AMD and diabetes up to five years before traditional testing methods, potentially saving your sight as well as checking your eyes are healthy.

Your optician is the best person to talk to if you have any queries about the health of your eyes. For more tips on taking care of your eyes, or to find your nearest Leightons Opticians and Hearing Care, visit our website.