Don’t you wish there was a way to improve your eyesight without costly prostheses or procedures? If you know what foods to eat, you just might see some improvement. A visionary diet won’t cure you of nearsightedness or correct your astigmatism, but it will boost the health of your eyes, improving and preserving your vision for the rest of your life.

If you’d like to start improving your eyesight, eat plenty of the following nutrients:

Vitamins A, C, and E

All vitamins help the health of your eyes, but some do more than others. For example, vitamin A boosts your immune system, which helps your eyes stay healthy, but it also helps your eyes create retinol, which is one of the molecules that helps you see in the dark. Foods rich in vitamin A include:

• Kale
• Carrots
• Sweet potatoes
• Butternut squashes
• Apricots
• Cantaloupes
• Mangos

Vitamin C also boosts your immune system, and it helps you to heal more quickly. It’s a powerful antioxidant that keeps toxins from ever reaching your eyes (as well as the other parts of your body). Eat these foods to give your eyes a vitamin C infusion:

• Bell peppers
• Broccoli
• Strawberries
• Kiwi
• Guavas
• Orange

Vitamin E is yet another antioxidant that will keep your eyes healthy. It also aids in neurological functions, which includes the function of your eyes. If you want to keep your eyes healthy, get plenty of vitamin E by eating these foods:

• Almonds
• Sunflower seeds
• Spinach
• Avocados

But vitamins are not the only nutrients that’ll protect your eyes. If you’d like to vastly improve your visual health, you’ll need additional antioxidants and other important nutrients, like omega-3 fatty acids.

Anthocyanin

Speaking of antioxidants, anthocyanin-dense foods not only fight off infection and keep your eyes healthy, but contain anti-inflammatory agents too. That means that they keep capillaries from becoming inflamed inside your eyes. Inflammation impacts blood flow, which results in cell death and eventually leads to blurry vision. Avoid that problem by eating these fruits.

• Acai berry
• Raspberry
• Blueberries
• Grapes
• Goji berries

Beta-Carotene, Lutein, and Zeaxanthin

These chemicals are also antioxidants, but they specifically protect your macula from sun damage. The macula is a circular structure in the centre of the retina that has a dense concentration of receptor cells on it. It’s very important for focusing your vision on what’s right in front of you, so you should take care of it by eating these beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin-rich foods.

• Egg yolks
• Kale
• Carrots
• Sweet potatoes
• Yellow peppers
• Pumpkins

Sulphur, Cysteine, and Lecithin

Want to protect your eyes from cataracts? Keep your vision unclouded by eating foods packed with sulphur, cysteine, and lecithin:

• Garlic
• Onions
• Shallots
• Capers

DHA (Docosahexaenoic Acid)

To give your retina a final healthy boost, eat foods rich with DHA, an omega 3 fatty acid. This particular fatty acid is actually what makes up parts your retina, so eating it helps your retina to heal and grow. DHA also improves your eye health because it supports cell membranes, which strengthens your eyes at the most basic level. Foods with awesome DHA levels include fatty fishes, like

• Wild salmon
• Sardines
• Mackerel
• Cod

As long as you eat healthy doses of all of these nutrients, your eyes will stay healthy for years to come. You may even see some improvement in your vision. For more tips on how to naturally improve and preserve your eyesight, call Londonderry Eye Care.

We’d be happy to answer your questions.