Save Your Vision Month: 6 Ways to Protect Your Vision

When you consider your future, how often do you think of your vision? After all, you check off tons of tasks, from college and career to family and retirement, throughout your life. However, if you’re not caring for your vision, then you’re taking this important sense for granted.
That’s one reason why the American Optometric Association declared March, “Save Your Vision” month. It’s all about raising awareness about the need for comprehensive yearly eye exams to keep your vision at its best throughout your life!
Here are six tips to “save your vision” for as long as possible:

1. Wear Proper Eye Protection

Whether you’re on the job or in the sun, eye protection is important to maintain healthy vision. In the sun, UV protection is paramount, as the effects can influence cataracts and age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Likewise, your workplace should provide approved eyewear to prevent blinding injuries.

2. Take Screen Breaks

As a growing number of people rely on screens for work, school, and social events, digital eye strain is more common than ever. This condition can lead to headaches, irritated eyes, and blurry vision. While you don’t have to stop using screens altogether, you should take a break every 20 minutes and look at an object 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds, also known as the 20-20-20 rule.

3. Eat Healthy Foods

Keep your diet colorful with lots of fruits and vegetables, especially spinach, broccoli, and kale. Plus, fill up with healthy fats, like omega-3 and 6 from fish. These foods are packed with nutrients that support the eye’s structures and protect from age-related diseases, such as AMD, glaucoma, and cataracts.

4. Get Moving

Exercise increases blood and oxygen circulation to the eyes, and could temporarily decrease intraocular pressure, lowering your risk for glaucoma.

5. Stop Smoking

Smoking tobacco increases your chance of developing cataracts, glaucoma and macular degeneration earlier in life. It also greatly contributes to dry eyes. The best defense is to stop completely.

6. Schedule Regular Eye Exams

Did you know that 80% of vision problems are preventable and curable with early detection? In fact, many eye conditions will come on gradually and won’t begin to show symptoms until it’s too late, like cataracts, AMD, and glaucoma. There are also many other diseases that can present signs in the eyes such as cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol related issues, infectious and inflammatory diseases. That’s why annual eye exams are important! Schedule annual exams with your eye doctor.
The eye care specialists in Dallas at Kleiman Evangelista Eye Centers provide total eye care to enhance your vision, regardless of the effects of aging. Our state-of-the-art technology allows us to detect, diagnose, and treat developing conditions at the earliest stages, so you can hold onto your eyesight even longer.

Our skilled staff is highly trained in cataract and LASIK surgery in Texas to restore some of that vision loss when it does happen — because it is our mission to help you see the moments that matter.