Proven Hacks to Improve Your Eyesight Naturally

By Joanna 19/03/2018 In
Knowledge
Fitness Tips

How many of you wear glasses? Do you remember how old you were when you bought your first pair of glasses?

My country and my neighboring countries like Japan, Singapore and China have high rates of vision problems in children.

This is due to the more intensive education system where kids would spend long hours of studying indoors with artificial light, rather than being outside in natural light. Out of 10 of my friends, I’d say that 7 of them wear glasses. Unfortunately, this number is slowly creeping around the world.

I might have really small eyes, but I’m proud to say that I have near perfect vision. I don’t wear glasses or contact lenses. I’m going to share with you some of the practices which has worked for me. So let’s break them down in 4 categories.

Your eyes are part of your body, they have muscles, so just like other parts of your body, you need to feed them, train them, relax them and also protect them.

FEED YOUR EYES

Let’s start with FEEDING your eyes. What should I eat? Here’s a secret, I’ve been snacking and eating carrots whether it’s raw or cooked almost on a daily basis since I was young.

It’s not a joke! I really believe that my love for carrot has helped to protect my vision. So what should you feed your eyes with?

Food for the Eyes

  • Orange-Coloured Food such as carrot, pumpkin, sweet potato and mango contain beta-carotene, which is a type of Vitamin A that gives these foods their orange hue is a natural vision booster. It helps the retina to function smoothly. I have to say these are my favourite group of vegetables.
  • Dark Leafy Greens such as spinach, kale, collard greens are loaded with lutein and zeaxanthin. These antioxidants act like a natural sunscreen for your eyes and protect them from harmful UV rays.
  • Cold-Water Fish such as salmon, tuna, mackerel and sardines are rich in Omega-3 Fatty Acids, which help protect against dry eyes and stop age-related eye deterioration.
  • Berries & Citrus Fruits is packed with Vitamin C to build collagen.
  • Nuts & Seeds contains Vitamin E which helps to protect the cells in our eyes from free radicals.

A general guideline is to get at least 3 servings from each group a week.

 

TRAIN YOUR EYES

The next point is to TRAIN your eyes. Just like your body, if you don’t train your eyes, eventually, they’ll start to become “lazy”.

Are you someone who spends long hours in front of the computer or mobile phones.

Do you always find yourself straining your eyes, having dry eyes and even headaches? Well, I can be guilty for that.

When we are staring at a computer screen or mobile phone, which is very close to us, we unknowingly strain our eyes. So the eye muscles contract. When you look into the distance, the eye muscles relax.

Stare at close object -> Strain our eyes -> Eye muscles contract

Look into a distance -> Eye muscles relax

 

What I have been practicing for many years is the 10-10-10 RULE. This means for every 10 minutes you’re working in front of your computer, look and focus at something that’s at least 10-feet away from you for 10 seconds.

Every 10 minutes of screen time – look at something 10 feet away – for at least 10 seconds

This 10-10-10 rule is very simple to practice and it will make a huge difference long term.

 

Most of you might not know this but, Tension in the eyes are often accompanied by tension in other areas of the body such as the face, jaw, neck and shoulders. Performing simple stretches to loosen up such as shoulder rolls and head rotations can help with your vision. Perform simple stretches to loose up such as shoulder rolls and head rotations

Roll your shoulders forward and back for about 15 - 20 repetitions. And do the same with head rotations. These simple movements will help to release tension, improve circulation and also the flow of energy in your body. You’ll feel more awake and less sluggish!

 

RELAX YOUR EYES

Have you seen some of your collegues, who would just sit down in front of their laptop, with their palms on their eyes? Well, THAT is actually helpful in relaxing your eyes. This method is called PALMING.

Some of your might have even done this in your yoga classes and you can do this at your desk. Rub your hands together for a few seconds until they feel warm. Close your eyes and gently place your palms over your eyes for about 30 seconds. Avoid applying pressure on your eye balls. Keeping your shoulders, neck and eye muscles relaxed, take deep and slow breaths. Relax your shoulders and eyes. Breathe deeply.

Palming is a great way to improve your eyesight and relax the eyes and your overall state.

Another home therapy I’ve been practicing what I call the Cucumber Cooler. If I’ve had late nights or if I lack sleep and wake up feeling extremely tired with puffy eyes.

What I’ll do is Place two cucumber slices on you eyes for about 5 minutes. This helps to relax the muscles around your eyes, reduce puffiness, it’s cooling and makes me feel a lot more alert. It’s a really simple and effective home remedy which you can do every morning.

 

PROTECT YOUR EYES

Who’s watching this video using your mobile phone or in a dark environment. Well, let’s not do that so often, alright?

The best why to have a good vision is to PROTECT it right from the start. How you treat your eyes every day, could either damage them or maintain a healthy vision for life.

So choose the right environment for your eyes.

Here are few guidelines to follow:

  • avoid reading for long periods of time, especially small print.
  • Reduce the use of dim or artificial light, choose natural lighting instead.
  • Avoid spending many hours in front of screens, give your eyes a break!

When it’s night time, choose the night mode on your phone and computer to reduce the amount of light going into your eyes. Take a break, go for a walk outside and stare at a distance.

What other methods have you practiced?

#jsohactive
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