Tips for maintaining good eye health

Published on 24th September 2019

This week, 23 - 29 September is National Eye Health Week: a campaign to promote the importance of good eye health and provide information on how you can look after your eyes and safeguard your vision.

2 million people in the UK are living with sight loss that is severe enough to have a significant impact on their day-to-day lives - and half of this sight loss is avoidable, says visionmatters.org.uk.

In this blog, we’ll look at some of the ways you can take care of your eyes…

Have regular sight tests

Sight tests are necessary for more than just checking whether your vision needs correcting with glasses or contact lenses. Sight tests are vital for monitoring the health of your eyes and detecting any eye conditions you may have, such as glaucoma. Many eye conditions can be treated if found early enough, so it is important to have a sight test regularly. For most people, this will be once every two years.

Maintain a healthy diet

Just as with our overall physical health, what we eat can also have an impact on our eye health and vision.

Foods that are rich in antioxidants can help to prevent retinal damage. And the antioxidant, lutein which is found in leafy green vegetables such as kale and spinach, is especially beneficial for the eyes. Kale is one of the best sources of lutein, with 48–115 mcg per 1g of kale.

Other eye healthy foods include:

• Brightly coloured fruits and vegetables such as carrots, red and orange peppers, kiwis and oranges
• Oily fish such as tuna, salmon and mackerel
• Broccoli and peas
• Eggs

Protect your eyes from the sun

Whilst spending time in the sun is important for your overall health, the importance of protecting your eyes from the sun should not be underestimated.

Never look at the sun directly, and make sure your sunglasses have the CE Mark or BS EN ISO 12312-1:2013, which ensures that the sunglasses offer a safe level of UV protection.

Sports eyewear

Winter sports

As we approach the winter, some of us will be looking forward to skiing or winter sports holidays. High altitudes and the reflective properties of snow can increase UV exposure, so it is important to own the appropriate eyewear.

For example, you may want to choose a ski helmet with a visor attached that protects your eyes from UV light, as well as from any ice particles, twigs or debris that could hurt your eyes.

Swimming

When swimming, be sure to wear goggles to protect your eyes. This is especially important if you are swimming in the sea or an outdoor pool, but goggles should also be worn indoors as chlorine can irritate your eyes.

Contact lenses should never be worn while swimming - regardless of whether you are indoors or outdoors. Wearing contacts while swimming can result in eye infections, irritation and potentially sight-threatening conditions if bacteria develops between the contact lens and the eye.

Visualase are keen to support initiatives such as National Eye Health Week and Sports Eye Safety Awareness Month to help raise awareness of the importance of looking after your eyes and make this information more accessible.

If your eyes are healthy, but you are considering laser eye surgery for vision correction, now could be the perfect time.

Visualase is Bolton’s only laser eye surgery clinic. We pride ourselves on delivering the highest level of clinical excellence and patient care - in fact, in our most recent patient survey, 100% of patients said they would recommend us to family and friends.

Plus, for a limited time only, we are offering bilateral laser eye correction for just £995 per eye (£1000 off!), available with 0% interest-free monthly payment plans over 12, 18 or 24 months.

To book your no-obligation consultation and assessment, click here - or fill in the form below.

All eye surgical procedures carry a level of risk including not obtaining the desired outcome, through to varying levels of visual loss. Your eye surgeon will discuss the risks and benefits, including ones specific to your circumstances, at the time of your pre-operative consultation.