Enhance Your Vision Health

An individual afflicted with myasthenia gravis will have vision problems, such as double vision. More than two decades ago, I was diagnosed with myasthenia gravis. Now, I don't have double vision because my eyes have adjusted themselves over the years. But it came with a cost: one of my eyes has lost part of its vision; that is, subconsciously, I have been using more of one eye and much less of the other. The price is that my vision has become blurry. The explanation is that we are supposed to use both eyes, and not one eye more than the other. 

The bottom line: if you have myasthenia gravis, you should take extra care of your eyes. I am past 70, and I do eye exercises everyday. Read my book: Vision Self-Healing Self-Help to find out more on vision health.

Your eyes are one of the most important of your body organs. Without good vision, the quality of your life will be greatly compromised. But your vision deteriorates as you continue to age. As a matter of fact, as you get into your golden years (that is 65 and beyond)), you will have noticed the dramatic decline in your vision. As early as in the 30s, vision loss begins and accelerates in the 40s and 50s. Now, if you are already in your golden years (that is, 65 and above) you might have much impaired vision, especially they could have been further aggravated by your decline in health, such as getting diabetes. Getting older will take its toll on your body in many ways and your eyesight is just one of the many organs that start to deteriorate with age.

Some of the obvious signs and symptoms of vision deterioration are: difficulty in focusing as well as in seeing either long or short distances. These common problems include nearsightedness (an eye condition in which your eyeball is too long, such that light rays fall short of achieving a point of focus on your retina, which is the sensory membrane at the back of the eye), farsightedness (also known as hyperopia, a condition in which you can see distant objects very well, but have difficulty focusing on objects that are up close), and astigmatism (a condition in which your eyes have an irregular shape, causing light rays entering your eyes to split into different points of focus, and thus resulting in blurry vision).

Macular degeneration is another eye problem that may come with age. Macular degeneration affects as many as 30 million Americans aged 65 and above. If you are 65, you have 25 percent of developing macular degeneration; and your risk increases to 30 percent if you are over 75. Macular degeneration is a devastating condition because it may lead to blindness.

The macula is a small central part of the retina that enables detailed vision. As such, it is critical to correct vision. Due to various reasons, such as heredity, hypertension, high cholesterol, sun damage, and smoking, the macula may accelerate its decline, which might have started even at an early age. Macular degeneration is a slow, progressive disease that affects both eyes, typically one after the other. Due to its slow development, macular degeneration may take years to become noticeable. By the time you notice it, the onset is already well underway. Therefore, prevention is always better than cure. Vision health is an important component of self-healing of the eye.

Another change in vision due to aging is the inability to see in dim light. Vision is possible only when light passes through the lens to the retina at the back of the eye. Through years of wear and tear, your lens becomes denser and less sensitive, and thus decreasing the amount of light getting to the retina. On average, a 60-year-old person needs 3 times more light to read than a young adult. This explains why you may react more slowly to changes in light. In addition, if you have developed cataract, which is a cloudy condition of the eye, you may have increasing sensitivity to glare.

Perception of colors is yet another change in you golden years. The reason is that your lens tends to yellow slightly; this may cause you to have problem reading black letters against a blue background or reading blue letters.

Other vision-related problems include floaters, which are tiny solidified fluids within the eye, and dry eyes due to decline in tear-production cells.

Consider the use of eye exercises to help correct nearsightedness, farsightedness or presbyopia. Eye exercises are easy and simple to do and you can even do them anywhere and anytime. A few exercises each day can really help you improve your vision significantly.

When you "exercise" your eyes, you move your eye muscles to create up-and-down, side-to-side or circular motion. These movements "work" the muscles controlling back-and-forth movement of your eye's natural lens, to help achieve sight at multiple distances. In addition, eye exercise can change the basic shape of your cornea, thereby instrumental in changing the angle of light entering your eyes for better and more correct focus.

To maintain natural vision health, eat a healthy diet. Antioxidants and vitamins and minerals are critical to boosting vision health.  You need high doses of beta-carotene, vitamin C, vitamin E, and zinc. Nutritional therapy is an important component of natural self-healing and vision health. Beta-carotene facilitates your body to convert plants into vitamin A, thereby instrumental in boosting normal cell reproduction in the eye, protecting the eye from free radicals, and enhancing night vision, Vitamin C is an important immune system booster, and an agent for making collagen to maintain healthy blood vessels in the eye. Vitamin E is a potent antioxidant to protect cell membranes. Zinc is a mineral required by more than 300 enzymes to repair wounds, to optimize vision health, and to protect the eye from free radicals. 

Nutritional therapy also includes supplements of lutein, Taurine, DHA, and ginkgo biloba. Lutein is a carotenoid found in vegetables and fruits, such as collard greens, kale, and spinach. Lutein promotes vision health through its potent antioxidant properties. Taurine transports nutrients to the eye as well as eliminates toxic accumulation in the eye; it promotes retinal health and night vision. DHA, which is an essential Omega-3 fatty acid, enhances the development of the retina. 

Ginkgo biloba is an ancient Chinese herb for vision health.

Most vision problems, whether nearsightedness, farsightedness, or presbyopia, have to do with eye stress and strain affecting the shape of the eyes, and hence their capability to focus correctly. Of course, the eyes cannot be relaxed if the body and mind are not. Therefore, it is important to have a holistic approach to vision self-healing.

If you are in your golden years, it is important to have a holistic approach to your health and wellness, which is the wisdom in happy and successful aging. Read my book Your Golden Years and Santa Claus to find out how to live your golden years as if everything isHYPERLINK "http://www.createspace.com/4843542" a miracle. Indeed, life is full of challenges, and you must learn how to overcome those challenges, especially in your golden years.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau