Seven Ways to Maintain Eye Health

Prevention is better than cure, no exception for eye health. Many simple ways to do it. The following easy steps can be taken to maintain the health of your eyes.

The eye is one of the sensory organs that is important to humans. Maintaining eye health can prevent you from the risk of eye disease to loss of vision. Here are some things you can do to maintain eye health.

Eye Check Routine
Everyone, from children to old age, is advised to have an eye check with an ophthalmologist at least every two years. Routine eye check can detect early problems in the eye due to certain diseases, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

Adults who are over 40 years old are even advised to have their eyes checked once a year. This is useful for preventing eye diseases associated with increasing age, such as macular degeneration, glaucoma, and cataracts. Whereas children must be examined, at least every two years, to detect vision problems that might affect their learning ability. Children do not need to have to be able to read to do an eye examination.

Also find out the eye health history in the family. Why? Because many eye diseases or problems are genetically inherited from parents to children. With an eye examination to the doctor, various eye diseases and symptoms can be detected earlier. The treatment will certainly be easier.

Eating nutritious food
Research shows that healthy foods that contain various nutrients, such as vitamin A, C and E, zinc, lutein, selenium, and omega-3 fatty acids, can help ward off age-related eye problems, such as cataracts and macular degeneration. Various nutrients can be obtained by eating green leafy vegetables, salmon, tuna, eggs, nuts, and oranges.

Don't Look Too Long at the Electronic Screen
Staring at the computer or smartphone screen for too long can cause tired eyes. Symptoms can include headaches, neck pain, shoulder and back pain, dry and tense eyes, difficulty focusing on the distance, and blurred vision. If you work in front of a computer all day, every 20 minutes switch your eyes away as far as 6 meters for 20 seconds, to reduce tension in the eye. Or you can also rest your eyes for 15 minutes every 2 hours. If your eyes feel dry, wink often.

Wear sunglasses
Not only does the skin need to be protected from the harmful effects of the sun's ultraviolet rays, the eye also needs to be. Eyes that are too often exposed to ultraviolet light can experience cataracts, macular degeneration, burning cornea, and even eye cancer. Therefore, wear sunglasses that can block UVA and UVB rays, and wear a hat when walking around during the day.

Do not smoke
Smoking can increase the risk of cataracts, macular degeneration, and damage to the optic nerve that can cause blindness and damage the retina. Smoking can also cause plaque buildup in blood vessels and weaken arteries, thereby increasing the risk of heart attack.

Remove Old Makeup
In liquid or creamy eye makeup, bacteria can grow easily. Dispose and replace your makeup if it's been used for 3 months. Always remember not to borrow and lend makeup from and to others. And make sure to wash your face clean before and after wearing makeup. If you experience eye irritation or infection when wearing makeup, remove makeup and immediately see a doctor.

Exercise diligently
Research reveals that exercise can reduce the risk of vision loss due to high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol levels.

How to maintain eye health can also be done by not ignoring various problems in the eye. If it feels like there are grains of sand in the eye, rinse with clean water. If the eyes feel itchy or look red, deal with eye drops or cold compresses.

Check with an ophthalmologist immediately if your eye complaints persist, or if your eyes feel sore, swollen, sensitive to light, such as floating dark spots when you see, or if you experience a visual impairment.