Eye Health
Here’s How I Improved My Eye Health with Five Healthy Lifestyle Habits
To pass along valuable takeaways, I provide an overview of eye health based on my reviews and personal experiences.
Purpose of the Article
This article aims to provide an overview of eye health, using myself as an example to provide valuable takeaways. I provide links to helpful and credible sources. This is a practical piece for information and awareness purposes. It is not health advice.
The Significance of Eye Health
Eye health is critical for our lives. Seeing the external world adds meaning to our lives. We only understand its importance when we lose our vision. Unfortunately, millions of people suffer from the impaired vision for various reasons.
The World Health Organization (WHO) states that “at least 2.2 billion people have a near or distance vision impairment. Vision impairment poses an enormous global financial burden with the annual global costs of productivity losses associated with vision impairment from uncorrected myopia and presbyopia alone estimated to be US$ 244 billion and US$ 25.4 billion.”
According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention), “more than 4.2 million Americans aged 40 years and older are either legally blind or have low vision. The leading causes of blindness and low vision in the United States are primarily age-related eye diseases.
Common Diseases Affecting Eyes and Vision
There are numerous health conditions affecting the eyes and our vision.
CDC documents seven conditions related to eye health: “Refractive Errors, Age-Related Macular Degeneration, Cataract, Diabetic Retinopathy, Glaucoma, Amblyopia, and Strabismus.”
According to WHO, “the leading causes of vision impairment and blindness are uncorrected refractive errors and cataracts. Most people with vision impairment and blindness are over the age of 50 years; however, vision loss can affect people of all ages.”
Strategies by WHO to address eye conditions and avoid vision impairment.
I reviewed strategies set by the World Health Organization and summarized them for awareness in this section.
WHO mentions that “While many eye diseases can be prevented (e.g., infections, trauma, unsafe traditional medicines, perinatal diseases, nutrition-related diseases, unsafe use or self-administration of topical treatment), this is not possible for all.”
Here is a summary of strategies by WHO.
“1 — Each eye condition requires a different, timely response.
2 — Effective interventions cover promotion, prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation associated with eye conditions and vision impairment.
3 — Uncorrected refractive error can be corrected with spectacles or surgery, while cataract surgery can restore vision.
4 — Treatment is available for many eye conditions that do not typically cause vision impairment, such as dry eye, conjunctivitis, and blepharitis.
5 — Treatment of these conditions is directed at alleviating the symptoms and preventing the evolution of more severe diseases.
6 — Vision rehabilitation effectively improves functioning for people with an irreversible vision impairment.”
A Brief Introduction to the Anatomy of Eyes
The structure of our eyes is highly complex. There are numerous components with different functions to enable vision.
The documented components of the eyes in the literature are the retina, sclera, episclera, conjunctiva, iris, ciliary muscle, cornea, lens, pupil, anterior chamber, posterior chamber, vitreous humor, macula, and optic nerve.
Interested readers might learn about these components from an entry on Britannica, publicly available on the web.
A Brief Introduction to My Eye Health History
In my mid-20s, when I experienced metabolic syndrome, unfortunately, my eye health was adversely affected too. I had to wear glasses for a short while. I disliked them and only wore them while driving a car at night.
Despite my old age, I still don’t need to wear glasses, thanks to my healthy habits.
The most significant impact on improving my eye health was the change in my diet and eating regimen, like the practice of time-restricted eating.
For example, my vision significantly improved after changing my diet, taking my blood sugar under control, making my body more insulin sensitive, and recovering from metabolic syndrome.
Nowadays, I see everything brighter. This capability makes me grateful.
I don’t believe I have a genetic advantage. For example, my parents had to wear eyeglasses after their forties. Unfortunately, one of my parents, who is diabetic, had impaired vision after 70.
The eye health literature indicates that some conditions are hereditary. The mentioned ones are glaucoma, optic atrophy, retinal degeneration, and age-related macular degeneration.
I pay utmost attention to my eye health due to its importance.
To create awareness, I summarize the key contributions to my eye health under five broad headings, only focusing on the key items for awareness purposes. I believe these steps can be customized based on your needs and lifestyle choices.
Five Healthy Lifestyle Habits that I Developed to Improve My Eye Health
My focus is on preventative measures by reducing risks. However, some people might need medical support to improve their vision. I excluded them from my protocol as I did not experience severe conditions.
1 — Nutrition and Supportive Supplements
From a nutritional aspect, bioavailable proteins and healthy fats like omega-3 fatty acids, including DHA and EPA, helped me improve my vision.
From the mineral’s perspective, the most important one was zinc.
As documented in this paper:
“The highest concentration of zinc in the human body is measured in the eye, particularly in the pigment-containing components. The deficiency of zinc has a dramatic effect on ocular development, especially when it occurs during the early prenatal period. Zinc is required for the structure and activity of many ocular metalloenzymes.”
Vitamins such as A, E, and C are important as antioxidants. However, Vitamin A is critical for eye health.
As documented in this paper, “ Vitamin A deficiency affects growth, the differentiation of epithelial tissues, and immune competence. The most dramatic impact, however, is on the eye and includes night blindness, xerosis of the conjunctiva and cornea, and ultimately corneal ulceration and necrosis of the cornea.”
The paper mentions that “Conservative estimates project over 500,000 cases/year of new active corneal lesions and 6–7 million cases of noncorneal xerophthalmia attributable to vitamin A deficiency on a worldwide basis.”
After transitioning to animal-based diets, my vitamin A levels got optimized, and my night vision significantly improved. I did not need to wear glasses while driving my car at night.
I don’t need to supplement with Vitamin A, but I do with other important antioxidants such as lutein and zeaxanthin. I plan to document these molecules in another article.
It is important to note that excessive vitamin A also causes toxicity, so we must be careful with supplementation. Some people use cod liver oil, which has a bioavailable version of vitamin A.
We must refrain from excessive calories, especially from refined carbs causing metabolic disorders such as type II diabetes. Unfortunately, diabetic retinopathy is a common complication of diabetes. In addition, it is the leading cause of blindness.
In short, a nutritious diet good for the whole body is also great for the eyes. If we miss some essential nutrients supplementing them with guidance from qualified healthcare professionals is a wise choice.
Interestingly, in addition to eye health, my new diet also contributed to my teeth health, as documented in an article titled Here’s How Altering My Diet Solved the Unbearable Teeth Problems Sustainably.
Therefore, I enjoy eating one meal of nutritious food a day.
I’d like to share my experience with two supplements, Lutein and Zeaxanthin, clinically tested and found helpful supplements for various eye conditions such as age-related macular degeneration and cataracts,
2 — Refraining from Toxins and Pathogens
Human cells cannot handle toxins and pathogens. Therefore, the human body has a complicated defense system, including many components to combat toxins and pathogens.
To a certain degree, the defense system can cope with toxins and pathogens. However, when they pass the threshold, it struggles. Thus, the cells get affected by them.
Our eyes are sensitive and affected by toxins. Eye toxicity is a critical risk factor for health. Ocular toxicity is a well-documented subject in medical science.
As informed in this source, “ocular toxicity includes inflammation and atrophy of the optic nerve and inner retina, loss of white matter, and gliosis of the occipital and parietal lobes causing various degrees of blindness.”
In addition, we need to be careful with cigarette smoking. The literature indicates that smoking can increase the risk of developing cataracts and macular degeneration. Here is an article on quitting smoking permanently.
Besides the defense system, autophagy and the mitophagy process also reduce toxins and pathogens. I cover this in section #5.
3 — Maintaining Physical and Mental Fitness
Physical fitness can significantly improve eye health by controlling blood sugar, making the body more insulin sensitive, and maintaining healthy blood flow and pressure.
Physical exercise has many benefits for the body. One of the benefits of physical training is reducing blood glucose, especially after meals with high carbohydrates and too much protein.
High blood glucose, when unaddressed, might lead to pre-diabetes and type II diabetes at a later stage. Many diabetic patients suffer from vision. It happened to me when I experienced pre-diabetes in my younger years.
For example, excessive sugar in the bloodstream might cause injuries to the walls of arteries. It is also the case for the eyes. For example, diabetic retinopathy causes the arteries in your retina to leak blood and fluid into the eye, damaging vision.
Contrary to common beliefs, reading never affects my vision. It even improves it. As an avid reader, I am cautious about keeping the required distance from a book or screen.
Eye therapists also provide specific eye exercises.
4 — Focusing on Neurological Health
The eyes are connected to the brain. Therefore, our neurological health relates to our eye health. Balancing our hormones and neurotransmitters can also contribute to eye health.
Supportive lifestyle habits for our can directly or indirectly affect the improvement of our eye health. For example, my vision was significantly enhanced by improving my neurological and mental health via lifestyle changes.
I have written several articles about brain and neurological health, so I don’t want to repeat them here. I link the recent three articles for interested readers.
Six Tips to Prevent Brain Atrophy and Lower the Risks of Mental Disorders
Here’s How I Activated Neurogenesis and Transformed My Depressive Mind into a Joyful One in 5 Steps.
5 — Initiating Autophagy and Mitophagy
Like the entire body and all organs, the autophagy process is a critical self-healing method for eye health. The autophagy process clears damaged cells and mutated proteins in various parts of our eyes. Autophagy is an essential contributor to ocular cell health.
As documented in this scientific review, “In the eye, virtually all cell types cells from those comprising the cornea in the front of the eye to the retinal pigment epithelium providing a protective barrier for the retina at the back of the eye, rely on one or more aspects of autophagy to maintain structure and normal physiological function.”
Readers interested in the role of autophagy in the health and pathology of the lens, cornea, photoreceptor, RPE, and the proposed role of this degradative pathway in glaucoma and retinal degenerative disease, might check this comprehensive paper titled “Autophagy in the Eye: Implications for Ocular Cell Health.” It is publicly available.
Mitochondrial health, like all cells, is also important for eye cells. As documented in this book, “Mitochondria are found in the epithelium and superficial fiber cells of the lens, and it is extremely sensitive to ROS. Mitochondria have been confirmed as the main source of ROS generation in these cell types.”
After I initiated autophagy and mitophagy many years ago, my vision improved. I have never had any issues since then.
As I posted multiple articles about autophagy and mitophagy, I linked two important ones here for interested readers.
Here Is What Happened When I Experimentally Initiated Autophagy Decades Ago
Here’s How I Initiate Mitophagy and Make My Mitochondria Denser in 7 Steps
Conclusions and Takeaways
The health of our eyes is critical for quality of life. Vision problems are widespread. Over two billion people suffer from them.
Numerous diseases affect our eyes and vision, such as Refractive Errors, Age-Related Macular Degeneration, Cataracts, Diabetic Retinopathy, Glaucoma, Amblyopia, and Strabismus.
Awareness of these conditions, taking cautions, and getting timely support from qualified healthcare professionals such as optometrists can be invaluable.
Regular check-ups are necessary for everyone. Even though I don’t have any discomfort or symptoms, I get checked yearly to ensure my eyes remain healthy.
Takeaways
1 — Customize your diet and consume nutrient-dense food supporting eyes.
2 — In case of nutritional deficiency, consider supplementing with guidance from qualified healthcare professionals.
3 — Keep the body moving with regular exercises.
4 — Control the blood sugar and keep the body insulin sensitive.
5 — Refrain from toxins and keep the eyes clean.
6 — Stop smoking if you are a smoker.
7 — Don’t scratch your eyes when they feel itchy. Instead, obtain necessary medications from physicians to address itchiness and irritations.
8 — Prevent eyes from sharp objects.
9 — Get your eyes checked regularly by an optometrist.
Here is a valuable perspective from retired scientist Mike Broadly about eye health.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
If this article is valuable for you, you might check my holistic health and well-being stories reflecting my reviews, observations, and decades of sensible experiments.
Sample Health Improvement Articles for New Readers
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