Diet and eye health
Roger castell
In our society, vision is clearly the most solicited sense. Multiple screens (computers, smartphones, tablets, video games) accustom our eyes to near vision every day. The resulting eye fatigue helps to understand why 80% of French people wear glasses or contact lenses. However, diet could also play a big role in deteriorating or improving this function.
1 – Vision: a complex function.
Vision is the result of a complex process that involves several organs capable of capturing and then transforming a simple sensation of light into nerve impulses transmitted to the brain. Finally, it is not the eyes that see, but the visual center of the brain. On the other hand, the two visual instruments must be in good condition to transmit precise information. But this state depends first of all on the general level of health of our body, since our eyes depend exclusively on the blood circulation to feed and clean them.
By improving the quality and purity of the blood, stimulating the blood supply to the eye area and eliminating the presence of toxins, you ensure that your eyes function better. To this end, 3 complementary aspects should therefore be applied: energy inputs quality (eating, drinking, breathing and sleeping), localized muscle exercises and practices that promote elimination. All three are essential, but I will develop here only the essential role of food (1)
2 – Choose well to see better
As with all organs in the body, the eyes need good decisions to maintain good vision and avoid age-related eye disorders. For example, food can provide serious inconvenience or essential nutrients for good eye health. The right choice is therefore necessary.
Harmful foods to banish. Foods that can pose a hazard to the eyes include the three dehydrators, the three toxicants, stress, and saturated fats. All of them are harmful, because they promote both the viscosity blood and acidosis tissue. The thickened blood circulates more and more badly in the tiny capillary vessels, responsible for bringing food to the visual cells, then carrying away the waste products of their functioning. As for acidosis, this accumulation of acids in the tissues of the eye, it will contribute to weakening the delicate organs responsible for vision, causing inflammations, in the vessels (arteritis) and in the tissues (conjunctivitis, etc.) sometimes accompanied by pain (retinal migraine).
The 3 desiccants are sugar and all sweet products (desserts, sweets), salts, both table salt for cooking, all the salts added to processed meats and foods (nitrites, preservatives), without forgetting the salts contained in water (tap, mineral) and finally medication, all of which are composed of chemical molecules.
The 3 toxic for the eyes are the drinks (alcoholic and sweet), the tobacco and all that favors acidosis, first certain foods eaten in excess (cereals, starchy foods, proteins, cheeses, etc.), but also stress, which consumes a lot of energy and disrupts the assimilation of essential nutrients.
saturated fats promote cholesterol. However, when the level is too high in the blood, cholesterol can hinder the transport of nutrients to the eye and even promote the occlusion of retinal micro-vessels. This can cause visual disturbances and contribute to the accumulation of lipids in the cornea, creating a yellowish ring on the eye. To see well, it is therefore necessary to reduce or even sometimes eliminate saturated fats (cheese, charcuterie, pastries, butter, etc.).
Faced with this list, it is therefore up to everyone to clearly understand where their interests lie.
3 – The beneficial food for the eyes.
This food includes three drinks and precious foods that almost all come from the vegetable kingdom. They should be consumed daily.
– Favorable drinks.
Water is essential to irrigate the cells of the eyes and to ensure the composition of tears. They are essential for the proper functioning of the eye, since without them, we can lose up to 2 tenths of vision. It is therefore necessary to drink 1 liter and a half of pure, low-mineral water every day. Take care of the enjoy slowly, like a fine wine, swirling each sip in your mouth to mix it with your saliva and thus promote its diffusion in all the cells of your body, including those of the eye.
The Red wine is right of a glass per day may be suitable to take advantage of its beneficial pigments (resveratrol) and its flavonoids which improve the micro-vascularization of the choroid and retina of the eye.
Infusions supplement hydration by providing antioxidant particles contained in certain plants such as green tea, verbena and rosemary...
– Favorable foods.
– Eat fresh, organic and raw fruits and vegetables. You will thus benefit from all the vitamins, including the precious vitamin C essential to stimulate the production of collagen. It is she who strengthens the structure of the small vessels of the eye, preserves the transparency of the humors and avoids cataracts. You can also prepare your vegetables by slow cooking “cooked al dente” to keep the enzymes intact.
– Stock up on natural antioxidants, to reduce cellular aging. These nutrients are found in abundance in colorful fruits and vegetables (tomato, mango, papaya, broccoli, carrot, spinach, pepper…). Prepare three times a day “rainbow” raw vegetables, in the morning with fruits (juicy, dry and dried) supplementing with organic oil 1st pressure (olive, rapeseed, walnuts, camelina, etc.), then lunch and dinner with raw seasonal vegetables.
You will thus benefit from vitamin E and the precious omega 3 which are both essential to nourish the tiny cells of the eyes and the brain. You will also benefit from the colored pigments, in particular lutein and zeaxanthin which participate in the maintenance of the retina and the fragile macula. This central area of the retina makes it possible to distinguish details and colors but can deteriorate causing age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
– Also stock up on foods rich in omega 3 fatty acids essential for thinning the blood and nourishing eye and brain cells. Thus, you can complete your raw vegetables at noon, with fatty fish (sardines, mackerel, trout, salmon, cod), twice a week. Choose as a salad Biography lamb's lettuce or purslane, also rich in omega 3. Season with rapeseed or linseed oil and add a few walnut kernels, hazelnuts or almonds, You will have a supply of omega 3, satisfying for your eyes .
– Eat cereal twice a week wholemeal and organic (bread, pasta, rice, etc.), which contain a lot of magnesium and B vitamins to strengthen the optic nerves. Alternate cereals with dry vegetables (lentils, chickpeas, dried beans, etc.), which are also rich in magnesium and B vitamins, plus iron. Oxygenation will thus be favored by avoiding headaches and visual disturbances at the end of the day.
4 – Diet rich in nutrients for the eyes
Many nutrients are involved in the health of the eyes, helping to prevent certain diseases (cataracts, macular degeneration, etc.). In case of personal troubles, family history or simply Prevention, one should adopt a diet rich in essential nutrients for the eyes. To this end, consume lutein and zeaxanthin, fill up on vitamins C, E and A, choose foods rich in zinc and increase the intake of Omega-3.
Lutein and zeaxanthin are pigments with antioxidant properties that give their yellow, green or orange color to food. According to several studies, these pigments have the ability to neutralize free radicals that damage the retina, by filtering blue light from UV rays. To protect yourself, it is therefore advisable to often consume foods rich in pigments such as green and yellow vegetables.
Vitamin A helps the eye adapt to darkness. It also ensures the proper functioning of the retina by creating two substances (rhodopsin and photopsin) which play a key role in transforming light and visual signals into nerve impulses transmitted to the brain. In addition, a carotenoid, beta-carotene has the property of transforming into vitamin A in the body. However, several studies have shown that a diet rich in these 2 nutrients can reduce the risk of macular degeneration. It is therefore recommended to eat orange fruits and vegetables often.
Vitamins C and E have antioxidant properties that slow down the body's natural oxidation (and aging) process. Scientific studies have shown that these 2 vitamins reduce the risk of cataracts and macular degeneration. They are in abundance for vitamin C, in juicy fruits and green vegetables and for vitamin E, in fatty fruits (olives, nuts, etc.) and oils of 1st pressure.
Vitamin D is very useful in reducing the risk of developing age-related macular degeneration. It is therefore recommended to expose oneself to the sun with caution, since the sunshine transforms the cholesterol in the skin into vitamin D or to consume foods rich in vitamin D, in particular cod liver oil.
Zinc is a mineral that plays an important role in transporting vitamin A from the liver to the retina to produce melanin, a protective pigment for the skin and eyes. Additionally, zinc is concentrated in the retina and choroid, the vascular tissue that nourishes the retina.
Omega-3 is found in high concentrations in the retina, suggesting that it plays an important functional role there. Additionally, low omega-3 levels have been linked to eye diseases including dry eye syndrome and macular degeneration. In order to reduce the risks, we recommend consuming foods rich in omega 3 every day.
Top sources of eye-beneficial nutrients and foods
| nutrients | Main food sources |
| Lutein/zeaxanthin | Kale, spinach, squash, broccoli, green peas, yellow pepper, egg yolk… |
| Vitamin A and beta-carotene | Sweet potato, carrot, pumpkin, spinach, kale, apricot, Swiss chard, squash… |
| Vitamin C | Parsley, red pepper, peach, orange, broccoli, papaya, kiwi, kale, pineapple, mango, Brussels sprouts… |
| Vitamin E | Wheat germ oil, almond, sunflower seed and oil, olive and olive oil, hazelnut, bran cereal, sardines, avocado, tomato paste... |
| Vitamin D | Cod liver oil, herring, mackerel, salmon, tuna, hard cheese, egg, raw milk butter… |
| Zinc | Oyster, pollen, beef, veal, game, chicken, crab, lobster, lobster, wheat germ, sesame seed, pumpkin seed... |
| Vegetable omega 3 | Walnuts, lamb’s lettuce, purslane, camelina, flax and hemp oil… |
| Marine omega-3 | Salmon, mackerel, herring, halibut, sardines, trout… |
5 – A food to have: “good feet and good eyes”
To maintain your vision, food is therefore a precious ally. The words of this article are all contained in the recommended diet, organic vegetable and raw, between 60 and 80% (depending on the season). The positive results on general health and vision are confirmed by those who apply it. This, for example, is asserted by Julien (64 years old). “I followed 3 years ago, the 4 natural health courses of the ABE and since then, I apply the advice every day. Not only have I resolved all my health issues, but I feel younger every day. I resumed my bike rides, and my eyesight improved so much that I now read without glasses. I am happy to have this vitality and I am very grateful to the ABE. I invite all people of my age to do the same. (2) Julien understood that health is maintained with natural products, to keep all life: “good foot and good eye”.
1 – See in addition Sources Vitales n°66 of March 2008 on visual problems.
2 – See the books, Bioelectronics Vincent and Keys to active longevity, Dangles editions and ABE internships.