You can do so much to keep your eyes healthy. One of the best things you can do is get regular eye exams—or at least an annual checkup to detect conditions that can put you at risk. Here are seven other steps to maintain healthy vision for life.
Eat the top eye health foods
Sweet potatoes, carrots, and pumpkins are loaded with vitamin A—essential to eye health, ophthalmologists share. Dark leafy greens like collards, spinach, and kale also are high in the eye-friendly antioxidant lutein.
Stop smoking
Quitting smoking lowers the risk of lung and heart disease and age-related macular degeneration, cataracts, and optic nerve damage.
Protect your eyes
Wear the best sunglasses you can find, even in winter; they help protect your eyes from the sun’s ultraviolet rays, exposure to which can lead to cataracts and some cancers. Look for large lenses and 99% to 100% UVA and UVB radiation blocking. Wear safety goggles or eye guards when using a hammer, a nail gun, or chemicals that might splash or while playing any sport involving a ball.
Keep your eyes clean
If bacteria get in your eyes, it can cause an infection with uncomfortable symptoms like itching, swelling, discharge, pain, and/or difficulty seeing. Throw out old eye makeup and replace your mascara about every three months. If you wear contacts, ensure your hands are clean when putting them in, and remove them at night even if they’re labeled for long-term wear—sleeping in them ups your risk tenfold because it gives bacteria time to multiply.
Take screen time breaks
Constantly staring at TVs, phones, or computer screens all day can cause dry eyes, blurry vision, or headaches because we blink less often than we should. Use the 20-20-20 rule to relax and rewet your eyes: Every 20 minutes, look 20 feet ahead for 20 seconds.
Keep eye drops on hand
High-quality eye drops can help soothe dry eye or calm itching from allergies or other irritants by flushing out particles. A pro tip: Keep preservative-free single-use artificial tears in your refrigerator; the coolness will help soothe and relieve your eyes even more.
Monitor changes to your eyes
If you notice dark specks drifting across your line of sight, those are floaters, which happen when clear gel behind the eye clumps. They’re not usually dangerous, and you can do nothing to get rid of them besides patiently waiting. If new ones suddenly appear and are accompanied by flashes of light or shadows, though, see your doctor to rule out a retinal tear. And if you start to notice that the white of your eye is red or the inside of your lid is swollen, itchy, or has a crusty discharge, it may be pink eye, a minor but super-contagious virus inflames the mucosal covering of the eye. Be vigilant about handwashing to avoid spreading it to your other eye (or other people!) and stay away from work or school until after symptoms have disappeared, which takes about seven to 10 days.
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