As you age, your body slows down and doesn’t work as well as it did when you were younger. The same thing goes for your vision. Your vision will lose its power as you age and there is nothing you can do about age-related vision loss. However, at the same time, you have the power to keep it as intact as possible so that any age-related vision loss you experience is minimized. You know how important your vision is to you because seeing is one of the main ways you can stay functional. Let’s go over how you can prevent any significant vision loss in the future.
Stay At An Optimal Weight And Keep An Eye On Your Blood Sugar
If you can stay at an optimal weight, then you are lowering your risk of having vision problems. That is because obesity can increase your chances of glaucoma, and that also means obesity increases your risk of diabetes. Diabetes results from uncontrolled blood sugar, and you can also develop diabetic eye disease that will also lead to vision loss due to the destruction of nerves. If you are struggling to keep your weight optimal, then you will want to see your doctor, and you will also want to ensure you are eating well.
Your Diet Matters
You may have heard that carrots and orange or yellow fruits and vegetables are good for your eyesight because of Vitamin A. There is truth to that as you want to eat fruits and vegetables that have plenty of beta carotene or Vitamin A. However, don’t forget that other foods can help keep your eyesight intact such as leafy greens that include kale, spinach, collard greens, broccoli, and so on. If you also eat foods rich in Omega 3 fatty acids such as salmon, halibut, or tuna, that will also help your eyesight. Even if you have a sluggish metabolism and you cannot lose weight easily, if you adopt a healthy lifestyle incorporating these foods and you keep your blood sugar under control, you will be fine.
Stop Smoking Or Don’t Start
Smoking can damage a lot more of your body than your lungs. That is because smoking can also harm your eyes as there are links to optical nerve damage, cataracts, as well as speeding up age-related macular generation. If you need help with quitting to smoke, work with your doctor.
Wear Shades And Protective Eyewear
If you are outdoors often, you will want to ensure that you wear sunglasses that will block out most of the sun’s harmful UV-A and UV-B rays. If you are also working in welding, sports, and other high-risk lines of work, then you will want to wear goggles, eye guards, and safety shields.
Learn About Your Family’s Eye Health History
You will want to speak to your family members about any eye health history so you know what to expect with your eye health in the future. If you no longer speak to your family, or if your parents are no longer around, you can always take DNA tests to learn about your genetics.
Go For Yearly Eye Exams
You do not want to miss going for your yearly eye exams. That way, if an issue such as cataracts or glaucoma is detected, you will be able to learn about how to slow the progression or even reverse it if it is possible to do so. You may be a candidate for surgery if necessary. Taking care of your eye health is just as important as taking care of the rest of your body which is why you go for annual checkups.
You want to ensure that your eyes are in good shape, and you want to keep them in good shape so you can minimize the risk of any significant vision loss.
