5 Things You Should Be Doing to Keep Your Eyes Healthy

We take many precautions to keep ourselves healthy. However many people do not take the proper precautions to keep their eyes healthy. Here are five things you should be doing for optimum eye health:

Proper Contact Care

If you wear contacts it is very important to follow all of the care instructions you receive from your Orleans optician. This includes taking your contacts out every night. Your contacts can be hard on your corneas during sleep and it is important to give your eyes a break. If you do fall asleep with your contacts in, make sure you use eye drops to lubricate your eyes before you try to remove them.

UV Protection

You slather on the sunscreen before heading to the beach, but do you wear proper sunglasses? When purchasing sunglasses always check they have UV protection. Then make sure you are wearing your sunglasses throughout the year to protect your eyes from the harmful rays of the sun. Sun damage can lead to a number of issues including cancer as well as cataracts and macular degeneration.

Computer Time

Your poor eyes are under strain from computers, televisions, tablets and smartphones. It is a good idea to give your eyes a break every 20 minutes when working on your computer for prolonged periods. Look at something for 20 seconds that is about 20 feet away to rest your eyes. As well your computer screen should be at least 20 inches from the eyes but no further than 28 inches. Positioning your screen at an angle 15 to 20 degrees below eye level is ideal to keep your eyes comfortable.

No Rubbing

It can feel awfully good giving your eyes a good rub now and then. However rubbing your eyes to relieve the itch and burn of allergies can actually make things worse. As well the more you touch your eyes the more chance there is of transferring bacteria that can lead to infection.

Diet

Add some eye healthy foods to your diet including foods with deep rich colours such as carrots, sweet potatoes, leafy green vegetables and dark berries. Foods containing lutein are very good for eye health and can help prevent age-related macular degeneration.

Following these tips will assist with eye health. However it is also very important to visit your Orleans optician for annual eye exams to check for disease and changes to your vision.