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Who doesn’t value their eyesight? Everyone knows our sight is something we should look after and not take for granted, yet we still see many people’s vision quality lessen with age. Although some of this is down to natural aging matters we can’t prevent, there are many precautions that can be took to dampen the effects and severity of macular degeneration.

1.      Eye tests and check ups!

One of the endless amount of things that go wrong as you grow older is your eyesight. Luckily we have eye tests to spot if a problem is occurring and attempt to fix it using prescription glasses before it gets out of hand. Regular eye tests will almost guarantee this, possibly before you’ve even noticed a problem yourself.

2.      Eat Healthy!

Almost every time I write or research a wellbeing or health related topic diet comes into play somewhere down the line. That’s because we get all our nutrients and fuel to function from what we consume and ingest. Every vitamin and element in food helps to aid a process or function. Foods containing Omega 3 (oily fish), Vitamin C (green vegetables), flavonoids (cocoa), Lutein (eggs), anthocyanosides (berries) and beta-carotene (carrots) can prolong and aid eyesight. However, there is nothing I can suggest to make you see in the dark. Sorry!

3.      Stop Smoking (or don’t start)!

Back to my last point of eating healthy tying into everything I write and research, smoking almost always makes an appearance too, but for the opposite reasons. I don’t think I need to explain to anyone that smoking is damaging to your health, but it carries many smaller risks from the obvious ones you may not know about. A study in America has found that smokers are four times more likely to suffer from macular degeneration as they age. If you ever needed more reason to kick the cigarettes, there’s another one right there.

4.      Wear proper sunglasses!

The third and final instalment of “It always makes an appearance in my writing and research” is the Sun. If you hadn’t noticed, the Sun is really REALLY bright!  Looking directly into the sun is never suggested, but sometimes when we’re driving or trying to look in a certain direction the sun is sitting in that perfect position to catch our eyes. Proper sunglasses with UV protection for these situations are recommended. Cheap sunglasses with no CE mark on them may seem like the help dim the sunlight, but they are not actually preventing the eyes from damage.

5.      Take a break from the screen!

It’s funny I should get to this point now, as it’s 4.20pm on a Tuesday afternoon and I’ve been staring at the screen on my desk since 9am having hardly turned away. It’s easily done when you get into a productive swing as you don’t want to put the ball down for a few minutes only to come back and find you’ve lost it! Looking at a screen for long periods of time, whether it’s the computer at work or the TV at home, can lead to eyestrain from being tired, weary and dry eyed. Avoid eyestrain by looking away from the monitor to a faraway object every 15 minutes, and taking a 5 minute break every hour or two.

6.      Wear safety glasses and goggles!

Not everything that deteriorates our eyesight is a gradual or natural process; it can also come down to carelessness and/or accidents. Wearing safety goggles when doing any DIY or sport activities where the exposed eye(s) could be hit by something is always recommended.

7.      Remove make up before bed!

Not only is leaving make up on bad for the skin but it can irritate and cause rubbing in the night that will leave your eyes puffy, red and sore. You’ll also be rubbing all sorts of chemicals that are added to the cosmetics you’re wearing into your delicate and sensitive eyes.

8.      Contact Lenses and glasses!

If you are treating an eyesight problem with glasses, contacts or any other sight aids it is important to get regular check-ups. If your sight has been corrected but you continue to wear them you can damage your eyesight again and end up back where you started. If you are wearing contact lenses it is important to keep them clean and change them regularly, as they are not only touching the sensitive part of your eyeball but go up under the eye lid when blinking too.

9.      Lighting!

Not directly related to poor eyesight, but reading a book or watching a TV in a dim setting can cause eye strain much the same as point five in this list.

10.  Self Check

And finally, keep an eye on your own sight (no pun intended!). Every now and then try closing one eye and then the other to compare your short and long sight. You use your eyes every day and know them better than anyone else, so if something does start to seem a bit off go and see a specialist to have an eye test as soon as possible and catch the problem early!

Rachel Thomas is a writer and reviewer for online health webstore BeFlattered Health And Beauty, where you can find a fantastic range of eye creams to aid you on the way!