Most people are
aware that keeping your heart healthy depends in part on what you eat.
Fortunately, the same diet that helps your heart is good for your eyes!
Eating a diet
low in fat and rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains can pay benefits not
only to your heart but to your eyes. This isn't surprising as your eyes rely on
tiny arteries for oxygen and nutrients, just as the heart relies on much larger
arteries. Keeping those arteries healthy will help your eyes.
Some foods
stand out as particularly helpful for eye health. Here are five things you
should make sure are part of your diet for healthy vision.
- Leafy
green vegetables. Kale and spinach are high in lutein and zeaxanthin, two
nutrients found in the healthy eye that may lower your risk for age-related
macular degeneration (AMD). Other vegetables with significant amounts of
lutein and zeaxanthin include romaine lettuce, collards, turnip greens,
broccoli and peas. And while not leafy and green, eggs are also a good
source of these nutrients.
- Citrus
fruits. Oranges,
tangerines, grapefruit and lemons are high in vitamin C, an antioxidant
critical to eye health. Research
shows that your eyes need relatively high levels of vitamin C to function
properly, and antioxidants can prevent or at least delay cataracts and AMD. Lots of other foods offer
vitamin C, including peaches, red peppers, tomatoes and strawberries.
- Beans. All kinds of
beans (legumes), including black-eyed peas, kidney beans and lima beans,
contain zinc, an essential trace mineral that is found in high
concentration in the eyes. Zinc may help protect your eyes from the damaging effects of light. Did you know that
peanuts are a legume too? Other foods high in zinc include oysters, lean
red meat, poultry and fortified cereals.
- Cold-water
fish. Research shows that diets rich in omega-3 fatty acid
from cold-water fish may help reduce the risk of developing eye disease
later in life. These fish include salmon, tuna, sardines and halibut.
- Orange-colored
vegetables and fruits. Carrots are high in beta-carotene, a nutrient that helps with
night vision, as are other orange-colored fruits and vegetables like sweet
potatoes, apricots and cantaloupe. Making them a part of a colorful diet
can help you keep your eyes healthy.
You can help to keep your eyes healthy by eating a “heart healthy” type
diet. Learn about how diet can impact eye health and vision when you schedule
an eye exam at
D’Ambrosio Eye Care at 800-325-3937, visit D’Ambrosio Eye Care, or
facebook.com/dambrosioeyecare so that we can help.
D'Ambrosio Eye Care provides eye care for patients throughout greater Boston, central and western Massachusetts with office locations at 479 Old Union Turnpike, Lancaster, Massachusetts 01523, 865 Merriam Avenue, Suite 119, Leominster, Massachusetts 01453, 100 Powder Mill Road, Acton, Massachusetts 01720, 413 Main Street, Athol, Massachusetts 01331, 74 Main Street, Gardner, Massachusetts 01440 and 255 Park Avenue, Suite 606, Worcester, Massachusetts 01609
