Vitamins & Herbs For Healthy Eyes

For Red Irritated Eyes:

Eyebright Solution:

• 2 tablespoons eyebright herb (Euphrasia)
• 2 cups of hot water
• 2 cotton balls
• Steep the herb in water for 3 minutes or until cooled. Strain. Dip a cotton ball into the liquid and wipe eyes. Reduces redness.

Improves Night Vision

Mix together 30 drops of Bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) with 8 ounces water, drink 3 times a day. Or drink 2 glasses of blueberry juice a day.

Improve Weak Eyes

Drink a glass of carrot juice daily

Relieve Eyestrain:

Place slices of cucumber over closed eyes for 15 minutes. Its cooling and refreshing to the eyes.

Reduce Swelling or Puffiness:

Use green tea that has steeped for five minutes and cooled. Wipe the eyes with this solution several times a day.

Drinking tea helps to deter cataracts.

Vitamins and Minerals For Eyes:

Vitamin A : Improves night vision. Food Source for vitamin A is dark green leafy vegetables, carrots, spinach, broccoli, eggs, cheese and butter are also great sources.

Vitamin B complex is good to reduce redness in eyes and can help eyes that are sensitive to light. Food Sources for vitamins B1 (thiamin), B2 (riboflavin), B3 (niacin), B6 (pyridoxine), B12 (cobalamin): pastas, breads, milk, dark green vegetables, mushrooms, tuna, nuts, avocados, bananas, liver.

Carotene allows the formation of visual purple in the eyes, which helps improve weak eyes. A good source of carotene is: carrots, broccoli, cabbage and peas.

Life Style and Eyes

For Athletes

Keep in mind that an athlete may still require protection against injuries during contact sports, no matter which type of vision correction he chooses. If there is any risk of being hit by a fast-moving ball or other object (as in racquetball, squash, hockey, etc.), eye protection is highly-recommended, whether you are wearing contacts or not. A polycarbonate eyeguard will not distort vision.

While some manufacturers have develSoped contact lenses that offer protection from ultraviolet rays, many lenses do not. In any case, sunglasses or dark goggles should be worn to protect the eyes in sunlight outdoors, particularly in such sports as swimming, skiing or ice-skating where they may be a lot of glare.

Performers & Actors: contactlenses on stage

Contact lenses provide a double benefit to the active lifestyles of performers, who may need to change or enhance their appearance while dancing, acting or participating in dramatic activities that may be as vigorous as a major league baseball game.

Before colored contact lenses were available to the public, movie stars were using them to change their eye color. Audrey Hepburn won an Academy Award for Wait Until Dark in 1967, in which she played a blind woman, wearing lenses specially designed to make her appear so.

Computer Use and Eyes

Instead of starring on the silver screen, or slugging home runs out of Fenway Park , a great number of people spend the majority of their workday in front of a computer screen. By one estimate, nearly 90 percent of those people working at a video display terminal (VDT) experienced some form of vision problem as a result.

How do you tell if your symptoms are related to your computer use?

VDT-related symptoms occur some time after you start work. As the workday progresses, your symptoms will become more acute. What are the symptoms that are related to computer use?

• Difficulty focusing after working at a computer, with blurry or double vision
• Eyestrain or eye fatigue
• Headaches or backaches
• Dry and/or irritated eyes
• Neck stiffness or discomfort
• After-images when looking away from the screen
• Sensitivity to lighting
• Muscle spasms

Are there environmental factors that could affect your symptoms?

• Bright lights in your peripheral field of vision could add to discomfort or reduced visual performance.
• Reflected light on your computer screen can decrease the contrast of screen characters and possibly force you to assume an awkward position to see around the glare. 
• The location of your screen could cause awkward positioning.
• To determine the cause of your symptoms, you should visit your eye care professional. Before going to your appointment, however, take note of the environment in which your symptoms occur and at what times they are greatest. This will aid your doctor greatly in the diagnosis.

If computer eyestrain is the diagnosis, there are simple methods to ease the discomfort:

• don't focus on a single object for a prolonged period of time;
• improve the lighting around your monitor;
• blink often;
• frequently close your eyes, then look far into the distance (down a hallway or out a
• window) every 15-20 minutes to relax them;
• sit at least 18-28 inches away from the screen;
• tilt the monitor slightly below eye level; and
• keep your screen dust-free to minimize visual interference.

Eye Care Tips

Eye care is usually neglected by most people as they don't realize it importance. People rely on their senses to manage through life and eye sight is a very important factor which helps in everything you do.

Eyesight as well as eye care are very important health wise as well as aesthetically. Women have always been preoccupied with wrinkles around the eyes since it is one of the first places wrinkles and fine lines appear. The skin around the eyes is very thin, soft and sensitive thus it is more prone to damage. 

Eye care should be one of your top priorities when it comes to beauty and health care as the eyes are one of your most precious gifts. By caring for the eyes one can minimize and prolong the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines as well as maintain a proper eye vision. 

To help you look and feel great follow these eye care tips as much as possible:

protect your eyes with special eyeglasses if you work with a computer for several hours. Some computer screens don't have a protective cover for the eyes and this might cause eye damage, as your eyes get tired

wear good quality sunglasses whenever you are exposed to sunlight as the bright light from the sun might cause you to make grimaces and thus you will develop wrinkles and fine lines much quicker. In addition the sun can easily burn and damage the skin around your eyes if you don't wear SPF protection

wash your eyes with cold water whenever you feel that your eyes are getting tired. Staring at something or being concentrated to read can tire the eyes much quicker and the cold water will help reinvigorate the eyes

eye creams should definitely be a part of your eye care routine especially after the age of 25 to prevent wrinkle development. These creams contain certain ingredients which have been discovered as beneficial in eye care 

try to pamper your eyes using natural ingredients. Place a slice of cucumber, potatoes or other skin beneficial fruits or vegetables on your eyes so the skin can improve it's appearance

eat foods that contain high amounts of vitamins beneficial for eyesight and not only like carrots, broccoli, spinach, fish, soy and blueberries

try to get enough sleep daily, about 8 hours a day as this is the only time the eyes can rest and take a break to recover from the stress they are subjected to daily

do not rub your eyes with your hands if you haven't washed them properly so you don't get bacteria in your eyes and cause infections

visit an eye doctor if you experience blurry vision and headaches often

Care for your eyes so they can stay healthy and gorgeous looking and you will surely not regret it. There are several treatments available to minimize the effects of eye damage so try these options if the eye damage has already been done.