Our eyesight is one of the most precious gifts we can have in life. It allows us to take pleasure in all that we see around us, enjoy watching movies and playing video games, and even just observe the beauty of nature. However, it’s often taken for granted. Thankfully, there are simple steps you can take to protect your eyesight and maintain a good quality of life.
Protect Your Eyes from UV Rays: The sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays can be damaging to our eyes, causing cataracts and macular degeneration over time. To protect your eyes from UV damage, wear sunglasses that provide 100% UVA/UVB protection whenever you go outside. Make sure the lenses are large enough to cover your entire eye area; wraparound frames provide additional protection from peripheral light rays.
Pay Attention to Changes in Your Vision: Many eye diseases may not have symptoms until they’ve already caused significant vision loss or blindness. That’s why it’s important to pay attention to any changes in your vision—especially if they occur suddenly—and schedule an appointment with an ophthalmologist as soon as possible if something isn’t right.
Find Out about Your Eye Disease Risk Factors: Certain risk factors make certain individuals more prone to developing certain eye diseases than others. These include family history, age, race/ethnicity, lifestyle habits such as smoking or drinking alcohol, and existing medical conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure. Knowing what puts you at risk can help you better prepare for taking preventive measures against eye disease.
Schedule Annual Eye Exams: Even if you don’t notice any changes in your vision or have any known risk factors for eye disease, it’s still important to get regular comprehensive dilated eye exams so that any potential issues can be caught early on before they progress into something more serious. For adults aged 18-60 years old without known risk factors for glaucoma or other eye conditions, annual exams are recommended; those who do have known risk factors should visit their ophthalmologist more frequently than once a year. Step Away from Your Screens: Prolonged exposure to screens such as computers and cell phones can cause digital eyestrain syndrome (DES), which involves symptoms such as dry eyes, headaches, blurred vision and difficulty focusing on nearby objects after prolonged screen use. To reduce the chances of developing DES take frequent breaks when using screens—especially if you find yourself squinting—and try not to use them too close up; instead keep them at least an arm's length away from your face while using them..
Don't Touch Your Eyes: Our hands come into contact with countless germs throughout the day; when these germs come into contact with our eyes they can cause infections like conjunctivitis (pink eye). To avoid this problem make sure you wash your hands thoroughly before coming into contact with your eyes—or anyone else's! Additionally keep foreign objects away from your eyes; never rub or poke hard at them since this could lead to scratches on the surface of the eyeball itself.. Add More Fruits and Vegetables To Your Diet: Eating a diet rich in fruits and vegetables is essential for keeping our bodies healthy—including our eyes! Eating foods high in antioxidants helps protect against free radical damage (which causes cellular decline) while eating foods high in lutein helps reduce the chances of developing cataracts later down the line..
Taking care of our eyes is one of the most basic things we can do for maintaining a good quality of life long-term. By following these simple tips – protecting them from UV rays; paying attention to changes in vision; finding out about risk factors; scheduling regular checkups; reducing screen time; avoiding touching our eyes; and eating antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables – we put ourselves in a better position for preserving our precious gift of sight now and well into the future!
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