8 Essential Nutrients that Boosts Eye Health

Nutrition plays an important role in keeping your eyes healthy throughout your life. Good nutrition helps maintain eye function, protect your eyes against harmful light, and reduce the development of age-related degenerative diseases as you age. There are many good nutrients for eye health available in your regular diet and in supplement form.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid) is a water-soluble vitamin and a powerful antioxidant. Vitamin C is important to maintain the integrity of connective tissues and healthy blood vessels among the eye especially the cornea of the eye. In fact, researchers have revealed that high concentration of Vitamin C in retina is crucial for photocells perform efficiently. High Vitamin C intake and serum ascorbate have been associated with lower risk of cataract by around 30%. AREDS and AREDS 2 studies also revealed that taking 500 mg Vitamin C daily with other antioxidant can reduce the risk of advanced macular degeneration by 25%.

Vitamin C is abundant in fruit and vegetables, including citrus fruits such as orange, grapefruit, lemons and limes. Vegetables such as red pepper, spinach, broccoli, tomato are also high in Vitamin C.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin that is found in many foods including vegetable oils, meat, poultry, eggs, fruits, vegetables, and wheat germ oil. Vitamin E exists in many different forms including 4 tocopherols and 4 tocotrienols. Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant that exist in the lens of the eye, playing an important role in protecting the eye. It is essential in maintaining healthy eye performance. Vitamin E protects retinal cells from free radicals that slowly damage and break down healthy eye tissue. Studies have suggested that high intake of Vitamin E was associated with a 23% reduction in relative risk of age-related cataracts. Taking 400 IU Vitamin E daily with other antioxidants reduced by 25% the likelihood of age-related macular degeneration.

Zinc and Copper

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin that is found in many foods including vegetable oils, meat, poultry, eggs, fruits, vegetables, and wheat germ oil. Vitamin E exists in many different forms including 4 tocopherols and 4 tocotrienols. Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant that exist in the lens of the eye, playing an important role in protecting the eye. It is essential in maintaining healthy eye performance. Vitamin E protects retinal cells from free radicals that slowly damage and break down healthy eye tissue. Studies have suggested that high intake of Vitamin E was associated with a 23% reduction in relative risk of age-related cataracts. Taking 400 IU Vitamin E daily with other antioxidants reduced by 25% the likelihood of age-related macular degeneration.

Lutein and Zeaxanthin

Lutein and zeaxanthin are two types of carotenoids found naturally in vegetables and fruits especially in green leafy vegetables and orange-yellow color fruits. Lutein and zeaxanthin are found in high concentrations in the of the human eye, giving the macula its yellowish color.

Several studies, including the well-known AREDS 2 study, have shown that incidences of age-related macular degeneration can be reduced by consuming diets with high levels of lutein and zeaxanthin and supplementation by increasing their concentration in serum and parallel increase in macular pigment optical density (MPOD). A great number of clinical studies have shown that increased lutein consumption has a close correlation with reduction in the incidence of cataract.

As powerful antioxidants, lutein and zeaxanthin are believed to block the blue light from reaching the photocells in the retina, therefore reducing the risking of light-induced eye damage.

Astaxanthin

The red or pinkish color found in different sea foods, for example, shrimp, lobster, trout and salmon is because of Astaxanthin. Astaxanthin is one of the 600 carotenoids found in nature. The carotenoids are healthy antioxidants, but astaxanthin is the strongest antioxidant among all carotenoids! Research on the effect of Astaxanthin on eyes started long over 20 years ago. Scientists found that as little as 5mg of Astaxanthin daily supplementation helped relieve digital eye strains, eye fatigue and dry eyes significantly by around 50%! Different studies also showed that Astaxanthin supplementation increased tear production and improved tear film stability by reduction tear Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS). Below is a list of benefits that Astaxanthin does to eyes:

• Improves visual acuity (the ability to see fine detail)
• Improves depth perception
• Prevents and improves eye fatigue and eye strain
• Increases retinal capillary blood flow
• Improves eye accommodation (adjustment of the lens that allows it to focus)
• Reduces blurred vision and double vision
• Reduces eye soreness and eye dryness

Omega 3 DHA

Polyunsaturated fats are import to our diet, they not only provide energy but also benefits our health in many ways. Omega-3 docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an essential polyunsaturated fatty acid that presents in high levels in brain and eye. DHA is a major fat component found in the brain and eye accounting for up to 97% of the total omega-3 fats in the brain and up to 93% of the omega-3 fats in retina. 

Researchers found that infant girls whose mothers received DHA supplements from their fourth month of pregnancy until delivery were less likely to have below-average visual acuity at 2 months of age than infant girls whose mothers did not receive the omega-3 supplements.

Research identified that DHA may help relieve dry eye and chronic inflammation of the eyelids, consuming Omega 3 supplements regularly improved dry eye symptoms due to the fact that DHA increases tear secretion and help maintain a tear film on the surface of the eye.

Essential Nutrients for Eye Health