Best Foods to Improve Eyesight & Eye Health; Which Foods Prevent Cataract and Macular Degeneration

In this lecture, I'll briefly talk about nutrition, specifically to help your overused eyes and to reduce the oxidative stress resulted from continued daily use of computers, cell phones, and other electronic devices

So what is oxidative stress? Think of oxidative stress as a rust on metal, eating away at metal and weakening it

For the human body, oxidative stress occurs when there is an excess of free radicals in the body, damaging body cells, proteins, and DNA, contributing to accelerated aging and diseases in your eyes, brain, and body

Factors which are known to increase the risk of long-term oxidative stress include exposure to radiation, which I talked about earlier, obesity, smoking, alcohol consumption, certain drugs, exposure to pesticides or industrial chemicals, pollution, diets high in fat, sugar, and processed foods

Psychological and emotional stress is also known to increase oxidative stress. If you want to decrease oxidative stress, you want to reduce your exposure to EMF radiation from electronic devices as much as you can

Certain lifestyle changes, such as maintaining a healthy body weight, regularly exercising, and eating a balanced, healthful, plant-based diet rich in fruits and vegetables definitely helps

Your visual system, your eyes and brain, consumes more than 25% of the nutrition your body absorbs

The eyes consume energy and nutrients faster than anywhere else in the body

In fact, the healthy eye needs vitamin C more than any other organs in the body

Therefore, if you work at a computer a lot and want to keep your eyes and body healthy, then it's even more important to eat foods that are high in nutrients, especially antioxidants, to reduce oxidative stress and help protect your body cells by removing free radicals before they cause damage

So what nutrients do you need to reduce oxidative stress? Before I talk about what foods you want to consume, I'll briefly mention the types of food you want to avoid first

You know this, but here's a reminder. You want to avoid foods and substances which produce oxidative stress

The foods to avoid include processed foods, refined sugar and flour, artificial sweeteners, food dye and additives, hydrogenated fats such as margarine, baked goods, shortening, microwave, popcorn, frozen pizza, and fried foods

Smoking and excess alcohol consumption constrict blood vessels and dehydrate your eyes and body

They are also known to deplete your body's vital nutrients, including antioxidants, especially vitamin C, if you smoke

Thus further accelerate the oxidation process, which means your eyes, brain, and body age faster

Getting enough antioxidants in your diet is important to protect against oxidative damage to your eyes and your whole body

Examples of antioxidants include beta-carotene, which converts vitamin A as needed by the body, vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, zinc, lycopene, rurian, zeaxanthin

Out of these antioxidants, beta-carotene, rurian, zeaxanthin are especially essential for your eyesight and eye health

So where do you get these essential nutrients for your eyes? The foods which provide you beta-carotene, rurian, and zeaxanthin are colorful fruits and vegetables, especially those with yellow, orange, blue, red, and purple color

Leafy green vegetables have even greater amount of rurian and zeaxanthin. Examples of foods that are high in antioxidants are just about all the fruits and vegetables except white potatoes

Fruits include apricots, bananas, all the berries, cantaloupe, citrus, lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, figs, kiwi, mangoes, papaya, plums, watermelon

Vegetables include arugula, asparagus, beets, bell peppers, broccoli, carrots, celery, cilantro, collard greens, dandelion, kale, parsley, red cabbage, spinach, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, turnip greens

I call colorful fruits, colorful vegetables, and leafy green vegetables superfoods for your eyes because they help increase the levels of protective pigments in the retina, allowing you to see better and keep your eyes healthy

Simple foods also deactivate free radicals and protect you against oxidative degradation and cell damage from EMF radiation, thus enhancing the health of your eyes and body

The best way to consume these produce is eating fresh to get more enzymes, fiber, and nutrients. Consuming enough leafy green vegetables can be a chore. The best and fastest way to consume leafy vegetables is in fresh juice format

Besides colorful fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, such as almonds, Brazilian nuts, cashew nuts, flax seeds, hemp seeds, pecans, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and walnuts also contain significant amounts of antioxidants as well as providing you protein, healthy fats, B vitamins, vitamin E, and minerals such as magnesium, potassium, calcium, iron, and zinc

Flax seeds, hemp seeds, and walnuts also contain omega-3 fatty acids. Brazilian nuts are a good source of selenium, which is good for your thyroid as well. Blue green algae, such as Pralina and E3 Live from Oregon State in the US, is very high in many nutrients and is loaded with powerful antioxidants, which can protect against oxidative damage

All of these plant-based foods I mentioned above will also help you stay healthier as they don't have any cholesterol, thus better for your cardiovascular system, prevent cataract in your eyes, and help you stay fit too

Additional herbs and spices that have been shown to help protect against oxidative damage include olive leaf, oregano, rosemary, sage, fennel, ginkgo biloba, propolis collected by bees, garlic, and turmeric

Water. Water is a vital nutrient and a building material to every cell in the body, especially to your eyes. 99% of your eyes consist of water. Water helps lubricate the eyes, helps bloodstream to deliver oxygen and nutrients to your eyes and all over the body, and assists flushing waste from your body

Therefore, to keep your eyes and body healthy and see well, drink plenty of water. General guideline is one half of your weight in ounces. For example, if you weigh 160 pounds, then you want to drink at least 80 ounces, which is 10 cups of water

Mind you that coffee and tea dehydrates you further, thus if you have to drink coffee, drink at least twice as much water afterwards

Drink only filtered spring or pure water. Avoid tap water, because tap water contains chlorine, which can be toxic to your eyes and body