While we’re awake, our eyes are in use all the time. To live a fulfilled and comfortable life it is crucial that we keep them healthy and do everything in our power to maintain good eye health.

In this blog post we give you a few tips on how to maintain good eye health and prevent further damage. Small changes can do wonders for your health in the long term. They’re super simple and super achievable, so let’s dig in!

Diet & Supplements

You can effectively support your vision with healthy and nutritious food. Several studies suggest that eating foods that contain omega-3 fatty acids like chia seeds, flaxseeds, herring and salmon have a reduced risk of developing various eye conditions (Source). If you don’t get enough omega-3 from foods, then adding some Black Currant Oil into your diet will do the trick.

In addition, foods containing antioxidants like selenium, zinc, vitamin C and lutein are great for naturally supporting your eye health (Source). You’ll get a kick of selenium from brazil nuts, beef, poultry or tuna. And if you need a little bit more, Selenium capsules are such an easy way to get some additional selenium in your diet.

Vitamin C can be found in lots of fruits like oranges and grapefruit, but also in bell peppers and tomatoes. Our Lycopene supplement is made from 100% natural tomatoes, so these little bad boys will give your eyes their daily dose of antioxidants.

Furthermore, blackcurrants are an amazing source of vitamin C. Our Black Currant Oil gives you lots of omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin C, but not only! Our Black Currant Oil and Borage Oil supplements also contain high amounts of GLA (gamma linolenic acid) that’s great for eye health, as it helps reduce inflammation and the symptoms of dry eye disease. (Source)

Moreover, zinc is another antioxidant that helps keep your eyes healthy and reduces the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and cataracts (Source). Zinc is most commonly found in seafood and oysters, dairy, beans, read meat, nuts and seeds like pumpkin seeds. Our Pumpkin Seed Oil softgels are a rich source of zinc. It’s not only important for your eye health, but also supports your immune system, cell formation and skin.

Quit Smoking

Smoking is a huge risk factor of developing different types of eye diseases like optic nerve damage, age-related macular degeneration, Dry Eye Syndrome, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and cataracts (Source). Smoking puts you at risk of developing any of those diseases about three times more likely. Something worth to keep in mind!

Just quit that nasty habit. Your eyes AND your body will thank you! If you’re struggling with smoking, we recommend that you read our blog post: Supplements To Help You Quit Smoking.

Rest

Most of us are almost always looking at their computer and phone screens. When we finish our work day at 5 PM, we continue staring at our phones and TV screens in the evening. It’s not uncommon that younger and younger people, even children, struggle with their eyes being tired or watery more often.

Give your eyes some rest. Staring at luminous screens can be harmful for your eyes. If your work requires looking at the screen a lot, take 5 minutes every hour to give your eyes some much needed rest. If your kids have smartphones or tablets, make sure to limit their screen time to prevent eye conditions that might trouble them for the rest of their lives.

Wear Sunglasses

Proper good quality sunglasses will protect your eyes from harmful UV rays. More importantly, never look directly into the sun! Even when wearing sunglasses. Looking directly into the sun might just feel a bit uncomfortable, but in the long term it’s very damaging to your eyes. In addition, reflections of sun can also harm your eyes, so if you’re in the water, around snow or sand, make sure to have your eyes protected at all times.

When buying sunglasses, look out for the ones that have a high protection level of UV rays. Anti-reflective sunglasses and polarized lenses can provide an added protection.

In conclusion, it’s very easy to dismiss the dangers of the things that we’re surrounded by at all times. Keeping your eyes healthy should be something that you’re always aware of and take active steps towards. Protect your eyes with foods containing antioxidants and omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, use high quality food supplements, quit smoking, give your eyes rest after looking at screens and protect your eyes from the sun.

Do you already protect eyes? Let us know in the comments!