Keep Your Eyes Healthy With These 5 Tips
By Brandi Goodman
Eye-related observances such as Low Vision Month in February and Save Your Vision Month in March are around for a reason. You need your eyes to see, after all, so being sure to care for them properly is a habit you need to include in your daily life. Keep your eyes healthy with these five tips and help yourself have the best vision possible -- for as long as possible.
Wear Protective Eyewear
This tip is meant in two ways. First, you need to keep your eyes protected when you're working on something that has the potential to be dangerous. Whether you're doing construction, working in a factory, or trying a project at home, it's important to wear safety glasses that won't allow dust, debris, or anything else to get to your eyes. Second, you need to wear sunglasses when outdoors. The sun can damage your eyes more than you may realize and sunglasses with UV protection can help.
Give Your Eyes Breaks From Devices
There's a 20-20-20 rule for your eyes. When you're looking at a television, phone screen, computer, or any other device for long intervals, you need to give your eyes regular breaks. Every 20 minutes, look away for 20 seconds -- focusing on something 20 feet away. This will help to prevent your eyes from becoming overtired or dried out.
Keep Blood Pressure and Cholesterol in Check
Did you know that other health problems can have an effect on your eyes? High blood pressure and cholesterol can cause trouble for your vision. Do what you can to keep your blood pressure and cholesterol in check, such as eating healthy foods, finding ways to relieve stress, and exercising.
Eat Food for Your Vision
You need to do more than choose foods that are deemed healthy. Find fruits and vegetables with vitamins that are intended to help vision. Vitamin A works to improve vision and keep your eyes from experiencing symptoms of aging too quickly. Eat more carrots, fish, broccoli, leafy greens, and apples to help improve your eyesight.
See an Eye Doctor
You need to start seeing an eye doctor regularly to ensure your vision is staying the same. Doing so will ensure changes in your eyesight can be caught early on. You may have a chance to stop vision loss from worsening if symptoms are discovered promptly. Start making annual visits.
Whether you're celebrating an eye-related health awareness month or not, you need to be taking care of your vision. Your eyesight starts to diminish as you get older. Doing what you can now to keep your eyes healthy and seeing well can help prolong the time you have to use them fully without vision problems or pain.
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Charlotte, N.C.