2 million people in the UK are living with sight loss severe enough to impact their daily lives. Half of this sight loss is totally preventable with good eye health self care. It's National Eye Health Week (20-26 September) so let’s get those peepers tip top in time for party season. Here’s some simple things to keep your eyes healthy this winter and beyond..

Regular eye tests

Get your eyes tested at least every two years, so if yours has lapsed, make that call. We should all be having a sight test every two years, or more often if your optometrist recommends it. It can pick up any early indications of diseases like cataracts, glaucoma and macular degeneration. It also detects other problems such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

Not just essential to check your vision and see if you need to wear glasses, sight tests are an important MOT for your eyes to keep them healthy. If you notice any changes in your vision, book yourself straight in. Practices are well set up to manage Covid, with many still operating a closed door policy, so you can feel safe attending your appointment.

Wear sunglasses all year round

Don’t be fooled by moody winter skies, exposure to the sun in any season, even overcast days, can increase your risk of damage to the eyes like eye cancer. Snowfall, ice and the sun sitting lower in the sky during winter creates more reflective surfaces for harmful UV rays and glare to bounce off into your eyes.

In Autumn when trees drop their leaves there’s less shade and so more direct sunlight is allowed through to us. The answer is to wear good quality 100% UV protected sunnies all year round when going outside for proper protection and keep a pair in the car so you’re never caught short.

eat your way to healthy eyes

Healthy eyes need a good lifestyle - poor diet, smoking and too much alchohol can lead to vision problems.

A balanced diet is key, alongside plentiful hydration. Leafy greens, Omega 3 and zinc are your eye health go-to’s. What we eat really affects our vision and studies have shown hugely beneficial antioxidants like Lutein and Zeaxanthin can help to prevent retinal damage.

Load up on these to get your daily dose..

Broad leaf greens such as kale and spinach, green beans
Brightly coloured fruit and veg such as corn, carrots, mango, orange peppers, squash and oranges and berries
Oily fish like salmon, tuna and mackerel
Nuts and seeds
Eggs

Mama said to eat your greens and darnnit she was right.

DRY EYES

In winter it’s important to lock moisture in. Winter winds and central heating, alongside hours spent on screens and social media, can all cause Dry Eye. If you’ve got constantly watering eyes or super dry eyes that worsen throughout the day you could have Dry Eye, where eyes become dry, tired and sore if you’re not producing enough tears. Turn down your heating and try to direct the airflow from car heaters away from your face.

Sunlight can also have a drying effect on the eyes and my own personal nemesis Autumnal winds! Cover up with sunglasses, which along with UV protection, will prevent gales and dust hitting your eyes. Help yourself by upping your Omega 3 fatty acids while artificial tears and eye ointments can soothe and lubricate the eye.

Drink plenty of water throughout the day to hydrate and remember to blink often. If your eyes are persistently dry, tell your optometrist as it could be a symptom of something else.

Wear your glasses

Many eye and vision problems begin to develop or increase as we get older. Contrary to what we might think, wearing glasses and contact lenses doesn’t make your eyesight worse by becoming ‘reliant’ on them – in fact they actively help your eyes work more efficiently, so get your specs on.

Family tree

Make a health family tree and find out if there are any eye related issues running in your family. If you have a family history of macular degeneration (losing central vision in the eyes), ask about taking nutritional supplements. Many eye conditions run in families, from simple long and short sight to more serious diseases, such as glaucoma which can be hereditary. Knowing and identifying these problems early can stop conditions before they become serious.

Your optometrist is the first person you should turn to if you have any eye concerns.

Take a break

Take regular breaks away from your screens and switch off completely a good few hours before sleeping.

Staring at our devices without blinking for long periods will cause eye strain so take regular breaks - follow the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, look at something 20 feet away for 20 seconds.

Get outdoors, let in some natural light while taking much need screen breaks is a great way to keep eyes healthy.

Easy Exercises for the Eyes

Palming

Rub the palms of your hands briskly and then placing them gently over the eyelids. Keep them placed until the warmth of the hands spreads to the eyes, a few minutes to rest your eyes from light stimulation.

Blinking

Blink your eyes for 10 times in rapid succession. Then close your eyes and take a break of 20 seconds. Repeat this 5 times.

Figure of 8

Imagine a figure eight on the floor around 10 feet in front of you. Now trace this figure gradually with your eyes. Trace it one way and then the other for a couple of minutes.

Sweet Dreams

A good night’s sleep is as crucial to your eyes as it is to the rest of your body. Time to rest and recover is important for our busy eyes. Another thing you can do to encourage sleep is wear blue screen blocking glasses to block out the blue light rays which can disturb and disrupt sleep patterns.

We can put blue light blocking lenses into any of our frames whether you wear prescription or not, check our range of screen glasses here. Our Blue Control lenses help to reduce the amount of blue light from your screens by filtering to help optimise sleep and reduce eye strain.

If you haven’t seen your optometrist for a while - it’s time to book in that appointment. We’re here to help updating glasses with new prescriptions, whether you need a new sustainable frame or want to reuse your old one - check out our reglazing service here.

Happy Eye Health Week!

Jo