NATURAL EYE CARE
The eyes are one of the five senses and the one of the most important organs in the body. Our eyes help us to make sense of the physical world, by helping us to see shape, light and dimensions. Good vision is necessary for conducting daily activities; therefore it is important to take care of our eyes.
Natural care of eyes involves the daily and annual routines that you adopt into your lifestyle to ensure that your eyes remain healthy.
The importance of natural eye care
• Our eyes are the gate way to the world and are important in order to live a quality life.
• Eyesight deteriorates gradually, and the only way to arrest eye problems early is through natural eyes care
• Natural eye care will prevent long term damage to your eyes
• You only have the two eyes. If you lose them, you’ll not get another pair
Good eyesight contributes to a better quality of life. All those activities that you take for granted and which bring joy to your life, are only possible because of your good eyesight.
A natural eye care program
To ensure that you’re taking good care of your eyes, here are some activities you can incorporate into your life to ensure that your eyes are not neglected. A natural eye care program
- Regular check-ups with your optometrist
Most people wait until they have a problem with their eyes to see an optometrist. Perhaps they’re getting blurred vision or other issues with their eyes. However this approach is risky because that visit to the optometrist may come too late and your vision cannot be saved.
An eye test can also pick up other health problems unrelated to your eyes such as diabetes and high blood pressure
An eye exam usually includes:
• A thorough look at the pupils.
• Visual acuity, which is a measurement of how each eye is seeing, is done using reading charts.
• A test to measure the pressure inside your eyes.
• An assessment of how well your eyes focus and how they move and work together.
- Wearing the correct prescription for your glasses or contact lenses
It’s important to ensure that you wear the right glasses for your eyes. Don’t borrow somebody else’s glasses as that person’s eye problem may not be the same as yours. Wearing the wrong prescription can cause headaches and strain in the eyes.
- Wearing an eye patch for strabismus or amblyopia
If you have been prescribed for an eye patch to correct a lazy eye, or another problem, please ensure that you do so. They eye patch usually covers the strong eyes so as to force you to use the weaker eye so as to make it stronger.
- Diet
What you eat has a significant impact on the health of your eyes. You probably know that carrots are the best food for your eyes, however an over balanced diet is important too. Leafy vegetables contain antioxidants which protect your eyes from pollution and sunlight.
- Exercise
While eye exercises cannot improve your vision they can relieve the stress in your eyes especially if you work in front of a computer for many hours. Here are some exercises you can to relieve the strain in your eyes.
• Blinking keeps your eyes fresh and makes them focus better. Computer users tend to stare at the screen for long periods of time without blinking and this causes your eyes to tire and strain.
• Look away from your computer after every twenty minutes or so. This relaxes the muscles inside the eyes and gives them a moment to rest.
• Palming is another exercise that can relieve the stress in your eyes. Place your hands over your eyes and ensure that you can blink comfortably. This exercise rests your mind and your eyes.
Natural treatments for dark circles
Dark circles refer to a dark discolouration under the eyes are caused by:
- Mental or physical stress inc crying
- Heredity
- Aging
- Working without breaks in front of a computer
- Lack of enough sleep
- An unhealthy diet
- Excessive crying
While dark circles are not a serious problem, they look unsightly and they make you appear older and exhausted. To get rid of dark circles quickly:
• Apply a small amount of Almonds oil on the dark circles and leave it overnight, then wash it off. Do this until the dark circles disappear. Almonds oil is rich in Vitamin E which helps to get rid of the dark circles.
• Cut a fresh cucumber into thick slices and put them in the fridge to cool. Out the cool slices on the dark circles and let them stay there for ten minutes. Wash off with water. Cucumber has mild astringent properties that help get rid of the dark circles.
• Raw potatoes are bleaching agents and when put on dark circles, they lighten that area and they also get rid of the puffiness around the eyes. Grate two chilled potatoes and separate the juice. Soak a little cotton wool in the juice and use this to dab under and around your eyes. Rinse off with cold water after ten minutes. You can also place potato slices over your closed eyes for a period of ten minutes.
• Rose water is also good for the skin and for soothing and treating dark circles. Soak some cotton in rose water and then put this over your closed eyes. After fifteen minutes take the cotton out and rinse your eyes with cold water.
• Tomatoes have natural bleaching properties which help to get rid of dark circles. Mix a teaspoon of tomato juice and lemon juice, and using a cotton pad, apply this over the eyes. Leave it for ten minutes and then wash off.
• Lemon juice by itself also gets rid of the dark circles due to the presence of vitamin C. Use cotton to apply it under and around your eyes, then rinse off after ten minutes. Do this daily for several weeks.