Did you know that many of the health pledges you’ve made for the new year are also great for your eyesight? When you’re healthier, so are your eyes!
Here are four New Year’s resolutions that will help keep you and your eyes healthier for many years to come.
- Quit smoking.
JAMA Ophthalmology reports that nearly 20 million people in the United States are suffering age-related macular degeneration (AMD), and almost 25 million aged 40 and up have cataracts, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Being a smoker puts you at an exponentially greater risk AMD and cataracts, which are leading causes of blindness in adults in the US:
- Smokers get AMD at twice the rate of non-smokers.
- Smokers are 2 to 3 times more likely to develop cataracts.
That alone is reason enough to kick the habit. Need help to quit? Join a smoking cessation program to get the tools you need to make this vital change for better health.
- Take charge of your health.
Poor overall health can have a significant impact on your vision or make you more susceptible to diseases that eventually rob you of sight.
- Obesity
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Liver disease
- Hypothyroid/hyperthyroid
- Nutrient deficiencies
Your primary care physician can help you prevent illness or get chronic conditions under control with medications and/or lifestyle changes. In the meantime, small changes you make to your daily routine will go a long way toward improving your health and keeping your eyes as sharp as possible, for as long as possible:
- Eat lean meats and seafood more often than processed or red meats.
- Cover three-quarters of your plate with vegetables: colorful steamed, baked, grilled or raw veggies, and go easy on the butter and sauce.
- Chew slowly until food is mushy, so you’ll consume less.
- Drink more water.
- Cut back on alcohol.
- Get up once an hour every day for a short, brisk walk. It adds up! Aim for 30 minutes or more daily.
- Go easy on the eyes.
- Get plenty of shuteye. Some would argue that sleep deprivation is as dangerous to health as smoking. At the very least, tired, dry eyes are uncomfortable and not conducive to productivity.
- Pull your eyes away from electronics. Focus on something 20 feet away every 20 minutes for at least 20 seconds to give your eyes a much-need break. It’s the 20/20/20 rule.
- Blink, blink and blink again. Remember what we said about dry eyes? Screen time causes most of us to blink far less often than necessary to keep eyes moist and comfortable. “Sync the blink” with something that will remind you to blink. If you read a lot, blink when you see punctuation. Got dogs? Blink when they bark.
- Set up a comfortable reading environment. The light in your work (or play) space should be bright enough for you to see clearly, but not so bright that you’re squinting against the light. Make sure your monitor, tablet or phone screen is set at a zoom level that’s easy to read and keep them at eye level to maintain a comfortable head position.
- Get a quick (and safe) fix – SoftTouch LASIK or the SMILE Procedure.
If you’re still stuck in eyeglasses or contact lenses, get an annual eye exam to keep your prescription up to date. Vision can change for a variety of reasons, so you may want to also have different prescription strengths or types of eyewear for different situations. For a safer, longer-term solution, consider LASIK.
LASIK can represent a huge eye safety improvement, particularly for contact lens wearers. Getting free of contacts means no more infections from contaminated lenses, no more injuries from damaged contacts and no more contact lens intolerance (CLI).
At Detroit LASIK provider Lake Lazer Eye Center, Dr. Khambati uses advanced, proven laser technology to perform the SoftTough LASIK and the SMILE procedures. Which procedure is better suited for your eyes? Book your consultation with Dr. Khambati and find out. It’s the easiest resolution to kick off your year!
Lake Lazer Eye Center offers up-front pricing, and convenient and affordable payment plans for SoftTouch LASIK and the SMILE procedure. Dr. Khambati has helped thousands of Detroit LASIK patients and even people from all over the world escape the restrictions of glasses and contacts. In the event that you’re not a candidate for vision correction, we’ll assist you with a contact lens evaluation or a selection of designer and specialty eyewear.
