How to Naturally See Healthier in the New Year
Each new year, we make resolutions to become healthier. Usually the healthy changes we pledge to make center around improving our physical appearance and overall health. We all want to look better on the outside and feel better on the inside.
Motivated by the new year, we vow to exercise more and eat healthier. We set goals to do things like reduce stubborn belly fat and increase gut health to help us feel better.
But there is a vital part of our health that doesn’t often get featured in our New Year’s resolutions.
Don’t Overlook Eye Health
How often do we consider how our eye health contributes to how we feel and our overall wellbeing? Eyestrain is far more prevalent than most of us realize and significantly affects how we see and feel. Three out of four people experience eyestrain every day.
Most of us spend a lot of time looking at digital devices. All of that screen time takes a toll on our eyes in the form
of eyestrain.
Researchers have found that people blink up to 66 percent less when they’re looking at a screen. Blinking often is important because it spreads tears across your eyes to prevent eye dryness and irritation. Contrast and glare from screens contribute to eyestrain as well.
Eyestrain can result in itchy, burning, fatigued eyes that can’t focus at work or can’t enjoy reading that novel at night because they’ve just had enough.
Easy Ways to Take Better Care of Your Eyes in the New Year
You don’t have to stop working at a computer, reading or doing fine-detail activities to escape from eyestrain. There are some very simple choices you can make for healthier eyes in the coming year.
1. Eat vision-protecting foods. Carrots aren’t the only foods that help protect your eyesight. Get your fill of vitamin-rich orange foods in combination with other rich-colored produce to fuel your body and safeguard your eyesight. Foods like bell peppers, leafy greens and blueberries are rich in vitamins and minerals like vitamin A, vitamin C, lutein and zeaxanthin that all help keep your eyes healthy.
2. Exercise your eyes. It may sound silly but eye yoga is seriously good for your eye health. Your eyes are controlled by six extraocular muscles and like any muscles, they get fatigued when used for long periods of time. Easy eye yoga exercises like eye rolling, stretching and massaging increase circulation to the eyes to ease those muscle aches and pains.
3. Use an eyestrain-reducing lamp. While eating well and exercising are always important, one of the simplest changes we can make to boost our eye health is upgrading our lighting.
Using harsh or inadequate lighting isn’t healthy and causes eyestrain. Most indoor lighting is unbalanced, which forces your eye muscles to work hard to fill in gaps. Natural daylight is much healthier for your eyes because of its balanced spectrum of color.
To create healthy light for indoor use, researchers and engineers at OttLite studied the science of natural daylight. They developed ClearSun LED technology, the closest thing to natural daylight that you can find in an LED light. The reduced eyestrain lamps from the OttLite Wellness Series are proven to ease eyestrain by 51 percent to help your eyes be the healthiest they can be.
4. Let tired eyes rest. Even if you’re using healthy lighting, it’s important to remember that your eyes need to rest. Take regular breaks from your screen and follow the 20-20-20 rule: every 20 minutes, look at an object at least 20 feet away for 20 seconds. If you spend the whole day behind a computer screen, make sure to take longer breaks of about 15 minutes after you’ve spent two hours behind your screen.
Limit evening screen time to help your eyes and your whole body get the rest they need. Studies show that the blue light emitted from screens can disrupt the body’s natural sleep patterns so it’s best to avoid screens during the two hours prior to bedtime.
As our world becomes more and more digitally focused, protecting our eyes is essential. Keep these simple eye-healthy habits in mind and you’ll be on your way to seeing healthier and experiencing less eyestrain in the year ahead.
For more ways to see and feel healthier in the new year, visit seehealthier.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest for regular reminders and tips to help you live and see healthier all year long.
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