Did you know that eighty percent of our senses are reliant on our vision? With our sense of perception being so heavily intertwined with our vision, it would be fair to say that the most important sense organ in our body is our eyesight. By protecting your eyes, you can lower the probability of vision loss and reduce the chances of developing eye diseases such as cataracts and glaucoma.
How can we take charge of our optical health? One simple way is to make adjustments to our dietary habits, and take vitamins and nutrients to maintain our eye health. These nutrients include zinc, beta carotene, and vitamin E, which all play a crucial role in protecting our eyes. Find out where your body can receive these nutrients and eat these foods to improve your vision now!
Turkey
Turkey is extremely rich in zinc, which is essential for optimizing our retinal health. Research has proven that zinc can protect our eyes against macular degeneration and some forms of night blindness. It also helps the vitamin A in our system to create melanin, which is an important pigment that protects our eyes.
While turkey is often seen as a seasonal meal that is enjoyed during the Christmas season, its delicious flavor and affordability makes it one of the best sources of zinc. Why not enjoy a turkey sandwich or turkey casserole every now and then? Other foods high in zinc include crab, eggs, tofu, oysters, and peanuts.
Carrots
A popular example of a nutrient that improves vision is the beta-carotene in carrots. Beta-carotene is converted in your body to vitamin A, which plays a key role in preventing night blindness. It helps to protect the cornea, the outer layer of the eye, and plays a key role in preventing eye diseases such as xerophthalmia and other eye afflictions.
If you aren’t a fan of carrots, be sure to include pumpkins and sweet potatoes in your diet as they also contain high levels of beta-carotene.
Peanuts
Peanuts are legumes that are high in vitamin E. Research has shown that the frequent consumption of vitamin E can protect our eyes from age-related macular degeneration and even prevent cataracts. Vitamin E also acts as an antioxidant by protecting our cells from free radical damage. As such, vitamin E is essential for maintaining our optical health.
Alternatives to peanuts include other members of the nut family such as hazelnuts, cashews and almonds. Vitamin E can also be found in whole grain cereals, spinach, avocados, salmon, and abalone.
Improve your Vision Today!
Research has proven that having a balanced diet consisting of the nutrients and vitamins mentioned above will help to prevent or slow down the progression of different vision problems. Protecting and maintaining our optical health by eating right will go a long way in protecting the most important sense organ in our body. You should also consider visiting an optometrist or ophthalmologist regularly for an eye checkup. You are what you eat; make the appropriate changes to your diet now!
