Most of us take our eyes for granted. It has been often noticed that an individual splurges on expensive sunglasses for looking smarter. But, when it comes to the health of eyes, he or she is either ignorant or simply reluctant to do anything. This tendency is bad for the health of your precious eyes.

Remember, how you use them to stare at the screens of your gadgets all day long. Take out some time from your busy schedule and take care of your eyes. They are precious and vulnerable too.

Follow the tips below to keep your eyesight intact till your dying day:

Eat right for a good vision: It is very important to provide the right and sufficient amounts of nutrients to your body for developing or maintaining a good eye sight. Include nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids, lutein, zinc, and vitamins C and E in your regular diet to boost your eyesight. Food items like green and leafy vegetables, salmon, tuna, and other oily fish, eggs, nuts, beans, and other non-meat protein sources, oranges and other citrus fruits or juices and oysters and pork are excellent for the eye. The intake of a balanced diet keeps you away from diabetes, which causes blindness.
Give up smoking: Cigarettes or other tobacco products are bad for your eyes. They make your eyes more vulnerable to diseases like cataracts, optic nerve damage, and macular degeneration.
Guard your eyes from sunlight: It has been found that long exposure to sunlight leads to damage of the eyeballs. This happens as the UV rays in sunlight have an adverse impact on our eyes. You must put on sunglasses when you are outdoors for a longer period. You must choose sunglasses which give you 90 to 100 percent protection against sunlight. UV rays can cause cataracts and macular degeneration.
Avoid the screen: It is advisable to not spend long hours sitting in front of the computer screen or TV. Take breaks while working on the computer. Also, remember blinking your eyes while staring at the screen to avoid drying up of the eyes. Blinking increases tear production, keeping the eyes moist and healthy.
Use safety devices: If you work with hazardous substances, it is advisable that you put on safety devices on your eyes for their protection.
Hydrate your eyes: In order to have a good vision, you must hydrate your eyes by splashing water on your eyes wide open at specific intervals in a day. When you wash your face after returning from outside, don't forget to wash your eyes as well. As you splash water on the eyes, the dust particles on the surface of the eyelid, gathered from outside, gets washed away. f you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a ophthalmologist.

Tips for Improved Eye Health

Hypertension is a killer disease whose symptoms develop late when the damage is in advanced stages. Hypertensive Retinopathy is one such disease.

It damages the retina of eyes. Since retina is responsible for vision formation, Hypertensive Retinopathy can result in loss of vision. It is of grave concern that in most cases, Hypertensive Retinopathy is diagnosed later.

This is due to the fact that there are often no symptoms in the early stages of the disease. In some cases, where symptoms do manifest, patients may experience pain in the eyes, reduced vision, or headache.

What Happens in Hypertensive Retinopathy

People suffering from long term hypertension are susceptible to Hypertensive Retinopathy. Long-term hypertension affects the small and narrow blood vessels that join arteries to capillary blood vessels taking blood to different parts of the eye. These blood vessels become narrow with time if hypertension in the eyes continues unabated. This narrowing is more common in young adults compared to older people. Such unabated systemic hypertension also leads to leakage of fluid. This is why in some cases of Hypertensive Retinopathy, patients may experience exudation. Ultimately, Hypertensive Retinopathy may lead to damage to retinal blood vessels.

Risk Factors

Long standing hypertension is the number one risk factor for Hypertensive Retinopathy. People who are suffering from longer hypertension become most susceptible for this ailment.

However, studies have shown that hypertension for more than 5 years can even make people susceptible to this ailment.

Diagnosis

Diagnosis is done by Funduscopic Examination. The doctor would look at the eyes of the patient through an Ophthalmoscope which has different lenses. The Ophthalmoscope illuminates the retina and the doctor looks at the retina with different lenses. He can get a view of the retina, including blood vessels and optic nerve disks.

Findings of Diagnosis

For a person suffering from Hypertensive Retinopathy, this examination is likely to show:

Constriction of the arterioles.

Changes in the walls of retinal blood vessels.

Flame-shaped hemorrhages in the retina.

Yellow and hard exudates.

Spots in the shape of cotton wool.

Swelling of the optic disc.

Treatment

The primary treatment for Hypertensive Retinopathy is controlling blood pressure of the eyes. Some lifestyle changes like reducing the intake of salt, avoiding tobacco, etc., may bring down or control systemic hypertension in the eyes. In many cases, doctors may just recommend lifestyle modifications. Nevertheless, it completely depends on the extent of the damage and whether or not there is any fluid accumulation.

If the doctor feels that lifestyle modification is not enough, he may go for medicines that help the patients to control blood pressure effectively.

If the problem is in advanced stages and there is fluid accumulation behind the retina, the doctor may go for Intravitreal injection or Laser Therapy to control the edema.

Conclusion

Eyes are one of the most significant part of the body, this is why it is important for people to take care of it. In case of disease like Hypertensive Retinopathy, one must consult a doctor before opting any treatment or medicines.

Hypertensive Retinopathy - Everything About It!

With technology at your fingertips, it is hard to think of times when the existence of laptops and television sets was unimaginable. Technology is common enough to be taken for granted in present times. TV and laptops are especially in widespread use. The primary reason could be entertainment, an urge to connect to the larger world, or the need to kill time. Such dependability leads to severe health hazards. Read on to find out more:

Effects of TV and laptops on your health:

    Sleep deprivation: Long hours of exposure to artificial light can lead to sleep deprivation.
    It can also lead to serious vision problems: Watching TV or using laptops for long hours can make your eyes vulnerable to constant glare. You fail to realize, but changing lights of a computer screen or of a television set in a dark room can be extremely strenuous for your eyes to adjust. Constantly changing lights can lead to glaucoma. However, dry and itchy eyes, headaches and poor vision are the commonly noticed effects.
    It causes obesity in children and adults: Since all your work can be done on the internet, you tend to become lethargic. You are too lazy to go to the market or to the bank. Even if you are not watching you use the television for background music. Adults therefore do not make qualitative use of their free time. Children are addicted to playing games and browsing sites on the laptop. They hardly indulge in outdoor games. This leads to obesity in adults and children all the same.
    Propels your desire to eat fast food or packaged food: Binge eating is a very common practice while watching TV or using laptops. Chips, pizzas, burgers, ice- creams, cold drinks and absolutely anything junk devoid of nutritional value are more liked by us. Junk food not only leads to weight gain but is also detrimental to our digestive system.
    Can increase the risk of infertility in men: Laptops heat up when used for a long span of time. This heat can increase scrotum temperature which results in reduced sperm production, leading to infertility.   

As is said, nothing in excess is good for your health. It is therefore, best to make controlled use of TV and laptops to avoid its harmful effects.

Watching TV and Using Laptop: How it Affects Your Health?

There are many common measures people take to improve their eyesight or to improve their vision, including wearing glasses, lenses, and many more. Here are some effective exercises, which can prove to be highly beneficial to improve your eye health:

1. Stretching
This is the most common and also one of the easiest to do. It requires you to just look up, hold for two seconds, look down, hold for two seconds and then repeat this procedure for each corner of your eye, which means top-left, top-right, bottom-left and bottom-right corners.

2. Flexing
This is simply rotating your eyes in circles. Roll your eyes in the clockwise direction for one minute and then roll your eyes in the anticlockwise direction for one minute.

3. Focus switching
This particular eye exercise is probably the most useful one to improve eye health. In this eye exercise, you have to hold something at a reading distance and cover the other eye. You then have to find something that is at least twenty feet away and trace its shape with one eye closed. With one eye closed, trace more shapes, which are twenty feet away.

4. Palming
This exercise is also very simple to perform. All you have to do is cover your eyes with your palms. Once you have done this, just wait and see that there are no bright flashes of light. If you see that there is a bright flash of light, just wait till they go. This is used primarily to distress the eyes.

5. Deep blinking
This is also an incredibly useful exercise for distance vision. What you have to do is to place some large letters are at a fair distance and then sit on a chair. You have to then close your eyes and tighten all your muscles for 5 seconds. After 5 seconds are over, you have to open your eyes and then you have to see the letters for a second or two. The more number of times you do this, the more clearly you will be able to see the letters after reopening your eyes.

However, these eye exercises are not universally accepted by all doctors.

Exercises to Improve Eye Health

Eye Strain is an umbrella term that denotes a number of symptoms that relate to the extended use of eyes as well as discomfort that may come from excessive smartphone and computer use. This condition may or may not lead to significant eye damage and is usually characterised by blurry vision, headaches and a feeling of dryness in the eye as you blink less which creates less tears. This may happen due to the extended use of the eye when you are following objects on a screen or staring at a screen for too long. So, is eye strain the cause of your headaches? 

Find out more in this article.

Causes: Eye Strain or Asthenopia is caused by concentrating on visually intense tasks like reading from texts that have a fine print, the use of computers and other screens for prolonged periods, and trying to focus on objects in the dark. This can lead to distress of the muscles in this area which can also cause eye strain leading to a variety of symptoms including double imagery and even headaches and mild migraine like conditions.

Eye Muscle Imbalance: When there is eye strain which leads to headaches, it can also give rise to eye muscle imbalance which makes it difficult to concentrate with both eyes at the same time. In such cases, one may need bifocal glasses so as to fix the issue and prevent such debilitating headaches to remain on a persistent basis.

Diagnosis: Digital eye fatigue and ocular eye strain leading to headaches can be diagnosed by a doctor with the help of regular eye examinations. In any case, one should have the eyes checked at least once a year. This is especially important if your job involves sitting in front of the computer screen for prolonged hours.

Symptoms: There are a variety of symptoms of these headaches that are caused by eye strain. Apart from blurry vision which does not allow the patient to see properly and clearly without glasses, it can also cause headaches with symptoms like nausea and sensitivity to light. Retinal or eye migraines do not necessarily have to come with headaches, but the pressure can be painful enough.

Treatment: To begin with, the best form of treatment for headaches born from eye strain includes prevention which can be done by getting plenty of rest and sleep even as we limit the hours spent in front of the screen. One can also lower the resolution of the screen and make it more ambient. Also, the screen should be placed at a considerable distance from the eyes. The doctor can also prescribe glasses and eye drops for better eye lubrication.

Headache - Can Eyestrain Be the Reason Behind it?

An inflammation resulting in the formation of a thin layer inside the eyelids or the white part of the eyeball is known as pink eye or conjunctivitis. This condition turns the eye ball into pinkish color, hence the name. Based on the severity of the infection, either one or both eyes get affected.

What are the common symptoms?

Medium to heavy swelling of the eye
Eye crusting after sleep
A burning sensation
Irritation, itching or blurred vision
Redness and increased sensitivity of the eye
Different kinds of conjunctivitis:

Allergic Conjunctivitis: This is the type of conjunctivitis that results from eye irritants such as animal dander, dust particles and pollen. This is not infectious in nature. Treatment prescribed by ophthalmologist includes eye drops and non-steroidal medications. It is advised to keep the eye moist till it gets cured.
Viral Conjunctivitis: As the name suggests, this kind of conjunctivitis is caused due to a viral attack. Sadly though, antibiotics don t work and there is no particular medication for this type of conjunctivitis. Like common cold, viral conjunctivitis runs its course in a span of 1-2 weeks. Since virus is contagious, it is necessary to ensure that the microbes don t spread. Some common prevention measures are listed below:
Eye cosmetics should be abandoned till the conjunctivitis is cured
Hands should be frequently cleaned
Hand and eyes should not be in contact
Frequent change of pillow covers, towels and clothes
Swimming should be completely avoided
Spectacles in place of lens should be used until advised otherwise by a medical practitioner
Bacterial Conjunctivitis: This kind of conjunctivitis is caused by the streptococcal bacteria and has potential to cause real damage if proper medication is not taken on time. This is highly contagious. Prescription often includes antibiotic drop and ointments. The medication is prescribed for 2-3 weeks depending on the level of bacterial spread in the eye. It is very essential to complete the full course of medication to avoid recurrence. Prevention measures as stated above should be strictly followed.
Chemical conjunctivitis: Eye irritants such as chlorine cause this conjunctivitis. Frequent swimmers often get affected by this type of eye infection. Topical steroids are prescribed to cure this kind of infection. Immediate medical attention is required to avoid lasting injury to the eye.
How to prevent pink eye?
While prevention is the best way to refrain from conjunctivitis, some basic hygiene checks are very important. Here is a list of must do s:

Do not share personal items such as combs, towels and toiletries.
Stay away from a conjunctivitis infected patient
Using of goggles while swimming
Frequent usage of hand sanitizer and hand wash

Pink Eye - How You Can Prevent It

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