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When it comes to the health of your eyes, what you eat may make all the difference in maintaining natural eye health. Often, we believe that failing eyesight is merely a symptom of growing older and continually subjecting ourselves to prolonged eye strain. However, more and more evidence is supporting the conclusion that this may not be the case. Studies are beginning to show that by altering our lifestyle and dietary choices, we can delay or even completely avoid the risk of eye deterioration. By integrating recipes to improve eyesight, healthy eyes for life is a real possibility.
A 2001 study conducted by the National Eye Institute on age-related eye diseases determined that several key nutrients can actually reduce the risk of eye deterioration by 25%. These nutrients include zinc, copper, vitamin C, vitamin E, and beta carotene. An update to the study conducted in 2013 added even more nutrients to that list; omega-3 fatty acids, zeaxanthin, and lutein.
Each nutrient works to enhance our eyesight in a variety of different ways. When incorporated together, the effect results in a general boost in our vision. For instance, beta carotene has been shown to reduce the progression of muscular degeneration while lutein may prevent cataracts. Vitamin A may protect against night blindness, and dry eyes and Vitamin E can reduce the risk of advanced AMD (age-related macular degeneration).
While incorporating all of these different nutrients into a balanced, wholesome diet may seem hard, tt’s actually very simple! We have gathered for you some simple, easy ideas and recipes for integrating more vision boosting foods into your diet. Recipes to improve eyesight, recipe for macular degeneration, vision recipes; there are so many ways to integrate food for our eyes into our daily diets. Read below to see how easy achieving healthy eyes for life through a balanced, nutrient-packed diet really can be.
When it comes to building a diet to help you achieve healthy eyes for life, variety is king. By selecting foods rich in color, you will be ensuring that your body is ingesting all of the fantastic antioxidants nature has given to us to boost our health.
“One of the best things you can do for your eyes is to eat a balanced diet high in fruits and vegetables, but also low in saturated fats and sugar," says Dr. Leland Carr, a VSP network doctor and professor of optometry at Northeastern State University.
By incorporating side dishes filled with leafy greens, colorful produce and snacking on fresh fruits and vegetables, you can receive all the vital nutrients you need for improving your eyesight while reducing saturated fats and sugars.
Here are some great recipes for incorporating all of these vision boosting nutrients.
By starting your day with a healthy, vision boosting smoothie, you can make sure your starting the day right for your entire body. Feel free to make a smoothie featuring all of your favorite flavors, just ensure that it incorporates foods that are rich in vitamin C, vitamin E, zeaxanthin and lutein.
To help you out- we made a fun video showing you how we make ourfavorite vision boosting smoothie from YourSightMatters.com.
Fish has long been heralded as an effective source of omega-3 fatty acids, which can help reduce macular degeneration, dry eyes, and cataracts. While “high in fats,” these omega-3 fatty acids are actually beneficial forms of fat as opposed to the harmful saturated fats we find in fried or processed foods. What’s more, these fatty acids can directly aid in the health of the retina.
Don’t care for fish? No problem! Simply integrate a fish oil supplement in either liquid or capsule form to receive those beneficial fatty acids.
Here is a recipe for aperfectly baked lemon salmon.
And for your side- consider a nice fresh bed of leafy greens like kale or spinach. These greens carry with them a significant amount of lutein and Vitamin- C, all of which are very effective in combating eye degeneration.
The vitamins and nutrients found inside eggs have long been known to promote eyesight and are full of antioxidants that are good for our eyes. Eggs are rich in lutein and Vitamin A, which can both work to combat night blindness, dry eyes, and muscular degeneration.
Add along a side of blueberries or a citrus packed orange or grapefruit for a nice boost of Vitamin C and you will have yourself starting your day with a delicious, healthy and eyesight boosting breakfast.
While beef sometimes gets a bad rap in the health community, when digested in moderation, it can lead to a wide variety of benefits for your eyesight. Beef contains a high level of zinc, which can assist your body in digesting and processing Vitamin A, ensuring that your eyes are receiving all the benefits from this powerful substance.
Consider a side of beta carotene and Vitamin A packed sweet potatoes to give your eyes that extra boost.
When it comes to snacking, skip the junk food aisle and elect instead for nuts and seeds which are packed with a variety of healthy and eyesight boosting nutrients. Foods like sunflower seeds, pecans, and almonds all carry a tremendous amount of Vitamin E. Just a handful a day can account for half of your daily dose of Vitamin E.
Want to give your morning bowl of fruit an extra kick? Consider sprinkling some chia seed on top. Chia seeds contain more Omega-3’s than salmon, more calcium than a glass of milk and more antioxidants than blueberries, making them one of our favorite vision boosting snacks.
By swapping out grains that are high on the glycemic index like potatoes, white rice and white bread with foods low on the index such as quinoa, brown rice, and whole oats, you can be doing wonders for your vision. Not only do whole grains carry vision boosting properties like Vitamin E and zinc, but by avoiding foods high on the glycemic index, you are significantly reducing your risk for eye degeneration.
While this isn’t necessarily a recipe, drinking enough water alongside all these fantastic meals is a crucial step for creating a healthy diet and ensuring that your body can receive and digest all these vision boosting properties. Even more, proper hydration has been shown to help reduce dry eye.
It’s been said a million times before, but you are what you eat. We know how much a healthy diet can affect the major systems of our body; our heart, our weight, even our brains. But how often do we think about the ways in which what we eat affects our eyes?
For too long we’ve accepted the position that deteriorating eyesight is one of the unfortunate side effects of growing older. But this doesn’t have to be the case. What you put into your body can drastically reduce your chance of eye degeneration as you age. By incorporating these healthy and delicious recipes, we know you will be able to enjoy a long life seeing the world as it is meant to be seen; clearly and thoroughly.
Healthy eyes for life is no longer a fantasy, with these fantastic recipes; it's a reality.
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