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Tips to preserve your eyesight include:
- Protect your eyes from ultraviolet radiation from the sun by wearing sunglasses and/or brimmed hats.
- Eat healthy.
- Exercise regularly and maintain a healthy weight.
- Maintain normal blood pressure, using medications, diet, and exercise if needed.
- If you have diabetes, manage it with care.
- For those who spend many hours daily looking at a computer screen or other object, follow the 20-20-20 rule. Every 20 minutes look at an object further away(at least 20 feet), for at least 20 seconds. This helps relax muscles in the eye while preventing eye strain.
- Consult with your eye doctor regarding your optimal frequency of eye exams, and for prescription updates.
- Don't smoke.
- Use LED light bulbs as opposed to fluorescent bulbs. Recent studies show up to a 12% increase in eye disease in subjects exposed to indoor fluorescent lighting.
By: Evan Redmond, Pharm.D.
Sources:
1. https://www.cdc.gov/visionhealth/risk/tips.htm.
3. Walls HL, Walls KL, Benke G. Eye disease resulting from increased use of fluorescent lighting as a climate change mitigation strategy. Am J Public Health. 2011 Dec;101(12):2222-5. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2011.300246. Epub 2011 Oct 20. PMID: 22021286; PMCID: PMC3222423.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3222423/
