Your eyes have a clever mechanism for keeping themselves clean with tears throughout the day. Is your tear fluid production too low? Then your eyes become dry. The result is burning, itching, or even pain. Fortunately, there are many tips to help you combat dry eyes. Here are five you may not know about.
1) Drink More Water
Not drinking enough water can cause headaches, poor concentration, constipation, and dry eyes. Therefore, make it a habit to drink at least 1.5 liters of water every day. If possible, choose water or (herbal) tea. Do you often forget to drink? Then these tips may help.
- Add color to the water with herbs or fruits. For example, add lemon, orange, lime, blueberry, chopped mint leaves, or cucumber.
- Set an alarm on your cell phone to remind you to drink every 30 minutes. You can also download useful apps such as Plant Nanny or Drink water reminder.
- Drink a glass of water before each meal. This way, you get your water tax ahead of time, and you eat less because you are already full of water. You can also associate water consumption with habits such as going to the bathroom or brushing your teeth.
- Always carry a bottle of water with you and keep a jug on the table at work.
2) Reduce the Amount of Time You Spend in Front of a Screen
Now that the daylight hours are getting longer, you have another reason not to swipe at your computer or smartphone/tablet. Because of a feeling of entrapment, we’ve been spending more and more time at the screen in recent months. A study conducted found that the time adults spend on screens per day has increased by 14% and children by 33%.
On average, adults spend about 5 hours and 15 minutes in front of a screen each day. When looking at a screen, the eyes blink four times less per minute than usual. This results in dry eyes. But that is not all. The eye’s curvature changes when we focus our gaze for long periods on a single point nearby, such as a screen.
3) Doing Yoga for Eyes to Help with Dry Eyes
Have you heard of yoga for the eyes? This little exercise is designed to keep your eye muscles active and elastic. We are often on the other side of a screen and cannot see far. Therefore, after looking at a screen for 20 minutes, it is recommended to look into the distance for 20 seconds. Another important thing, especially for children’s eye health, is to get outside for two hours a day. These exercises help keep the eye muscles in good condition.
Circular: Make circular movements with your eyes as much as possible. Slowly rotate from the top to the right, down to the left, and back up again. Do the same on the other side, repeating three times on each side. Then close your eyes for a moment.
Horizon:
- Hold your hand 4 cm from your face and look at it.
- Focus on something else about 1 meter away.
- Look at an object further away on the horizon.
- Repeat this exercise about eight times.
4) Customize Your Shopping List
Nutrition is essential for eye health. But what should be on your shopping list for good vision? We give you some inspiration.
- Eggs are a good choice because they contain the pigments lutein and zeaxanthin, which are used by the body to make macular pigment. This helps protect the retina.
- The fatty acids in fish ensure the health of the body’s blood vessels and, ultimately, the eyes.
- Green leafy vegetables because they contain lutein and many other important vitamins.
- Mushrooms because they naturally contain vitamin D, which is essential for the eyes.
- Bananas, because potassium and zinc are essential minerals for eye health.
Let us know if these few tips have helped you in the comments below!
