Best Nutrition For Your Best Eyesight - Ask a Nutritionist

Transcript:

Britni: Welcome to Dishing Up Nutrition's midweek segment called “Ask a Nutritionist”. My name is Britni Vincent. I'm a Registered and Licensed Dietitian at Nutritional Weight & Wellness. And on today's show, I am going to be covering the topic of healthy foods for eye health.

Eye health is a very common concern that people talk to me about, especially as you age, and I'm going to be covering key nutrients for eye health, what foods to incorporate into your diet and how making simple sustainable changes can improve your overall eye health.

Processed foods negatively impact eye health

And the reality is, in our modern world, we are bombarded by processed foods. Which cannot only negatively affect our overall health, but also negatively impact our eye health. But here's the good news. Eating a diet of real whole foods and minimizing those processed foods can have a huge impact on your eyes.

Eat a variety of real whole foods

And I have seen that with my clients. So when we talk about a diet for eye health, big picture, think real whole foods. We want to be including a variety of different foods altogether, particularly including protein sources like meat, dairy if tolerated, eggs, fish, seafood. We also want to get most of our carbohydrates from vegetables, you know, leafy greens, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, carrots.

The list goes on and on, of course, and then we can't forget about the healthy fats: nuts, seeds, avocado, olive oil, olives, butter, coconut. Those would all be considered healthy fats that we want to be including every single time that we eat. The combination of protein, carbohydrates, and these healthy fats are going to ensure that we are getting a balanced array of different nutrients that our eyes need to stay healthy.

Specific nutrients essential for eye health & foods that contain them

So let's dive into some specific nutrients that are essential for eye health and the foods that contain them. All of this can pertain to, you know, dry eyes, macular degeneration, vision, and just overall eye health. I have had many clients see improvements in their eye health just by focusing on real food. Whether that is improvement in their dry eyes, improvement in vision even, or stabilizing their macular degeneration, that can all be done by real food.

Omega-3 fatty acids: crucial for eye health

The first thing I'm going to talk about is omega-3 fatty acids. We can't talk about eye health without mentioning omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s are crucial for maintaining healthy eyes, and especially when it comes to dry eyes. Omega-3s help to improve the production of the oily layer of your tears. This is vital because the oil helps prevent tears from evaporating too quickly, which is one of the main causes of dry eyes.

Omega-3 fatty acids, particularly DHA, are found in the highest concentration in your retina. In fact, DHA is one of the most important components of your eye structure. But here's a catch. Our bodies can't actually make omega-threes, so we have to get them from food or supplements, and they are called essential fatty acids for this reason.

Food sources are going to be fatty fish like salmon, macros, sardines, pasture raised egg yolks are going to provide a little bit of DHA, but if you're not eating fish on a regular basis, I would highly recommend a high quality omega-3 supplement.

We want to be looking for products with a. GMP certification. That stands for good manufacturing practice, and that means that it's been third party tested; and aiming for about 3,000 milligrams of omega-threes a day generally is what you need to see a noticeable difference. I want to add, it's estimated that up to 95% of Americans are actually deficient in omega-threes. So if you are not already prioritizing omega-threes, now is definitely a good time to start.

Zinc: vital mineral for eye health

The next nutrient I want to talk about is zinc. Zinc is a vital mineral for eye health, and it's one of those nutrients that plays a role in nearly every step of maintaining healthy vision. Zinc helps to transport vitamin A from your liver to your retina, where it's then used to produce melanin. This melanin acts as a protective barrier for your eyes.

Food sources are going to include oysters, beef, lobster, pork, yogurt, salmon. Those are all great sources of zinc, and yes, eggs are going to make an appearance. Again, they're great for both zinc and other eye healthy nutrients.

-----

Lutein & zeaxanthin: powerful antioxidants for eye health

Let's talk about two other very powerful antioxidants, and if you've ever done a quick Google search of nutrients for eye health, these two are going to absolutely pop up, and they are lutein and zeaxanthin. These are carotenoids that help reduce oxidative stress in the eyes, and they've been shown to enhance visual acuity and protect the eyes from damage caused by harmful light.

These nutrients are also going to play a role in reducing dry eye symptoms, and the body can't make lutein and zeaxanthin on its own, which means, again, like those omega-threes, we need to be getting them from food or supplements. And of course, food sources are absolutely always the best place to start. Lutein and zeaxanthin are found in once again, eggs, leafy greens like spinach and kale, broccoli and citrus fruits.

Vitamin A & beta carotene: key for healthy vision

Another key nutrient, up next is vitamin A, and beta carotene, which is well known for its role in maintaining healthy vision. Vitamin A is also a powerful antioxidant that's going to fight off free radical damage. Your body is going to convert beta carotene into vitamin A, and that conversion process is critical for vision health.

Some of the best sources of vitamin A and beta carotene are grass fed liver, beef liver, specifically; sweet potatoes, carrots, apricots, cantaloupe. Think foods that are orange; that's where we're going to see that beta carotene, and then leafy greens popping up again. These foods can help to ensure you're getting the right amount of vitamin A to support your eyes and overall health.

Key takeaway: focus on real whole foods in variety to cover all necessary nutrients

Now here's the big takeaway. After talking about all those nutrients, when you focus on real whole foods like the ones I just mentioned, you're giving your body the nutrients it needs to function optimally, including your eyes. So the key really is to include a variety of protein, healthy fats, lots of vegetables in your diet at every meal.

Trying to include lots of different colors of vegetables can be a really great way to get a variety of different nutrients. Doing so is going to ensure you're covering your nutrient bases, which not only improves your eye health, but is going to also improve your overall health.

So one place to start, maybe you look at your breakfast, a high protein breakfast that includes healthy fat and ideally some vegetables for fiber can really set you up for a great day. It's going to help to reduce cravings, support energy levels, and it's going to naturally lead to better food choices throughout the day. So you're going to be gravitating towards more of those real whole foods to get these key nutrients in. And I find that many of my clients notice an improvement in how they feel when they just start by modifying that first meal of the day.

Supplementation options when diet is not enough

Diet alone may not always be enough to fully address eye health, and that's where supplementation can come in. For instance, I always recommend a high quality omega-3 supplement, particularly for those who aren't consuming enough fatty fish like I mentioned earlier.

Omega-3s have numerous benefits beyond eye health, such as supporting heart health, reducing inflammation, even improving skin health, and if you've made these dietary changes and are struggling with your eye health, another really wonderful product that I would recommend is called 4Sight.

This is a worth an Ortho Molecular product that was formulated with a specific blend of botanicals, nutrients, antioxidants, and minerals that have all been shown in research to support eye health. The formula provides potent antioxidant support and the key nutrients that I mentioned before to support and maintain the long-term health of our eyes.

Specifically, this product can be beneficial for macular degeneration, dry eyes, and vision. Or again, if you're just looking for something to help support your overall eye health. I even had a client start taking this along with changing her diet and her vision actually did improve. The dosage for this is two per day. And if you want to check this out, you can visit our website, nutrikey.net.

The importance of adequate water intake for dry eyes

And then of course, you know, we don't want to forget about drinking adequate water for our dry eyes. You know, if you're not drinking enough water that can create dehydration systemically throughout our body.

Recap

I want to add, you know, changing your diet is a process. This is not going to happen overnight, but it's one that absolutely pays off with your overall health and your eye health like I've been talking about today. And the key is to focus on real foods, rich in the nutrients your eyes need to thrive: protein, healthy fats, the vegetables, getting some omega-3 rich foods.

These should all be the foundation of your diet. You might consider supplementing with omega-threes, possibly a product like 4Sight that contains the lutein and zeaxanthin that can further support your eye health. And remember, it's not about quick fixes, but about creating those sustainable habits that make you feel your best when you nourish your body with the right foods.

And the reality is when you nourish your body with the right foods, you're going to notice big improvements, not only in your eyes, but your overall vitality and wellbeing. I want to thank you so much for listening to Dishing Up Nutrition’s “Ask a Nutritionist”.

If you found this episode helpful, b sure to leave us a rating or review on your favorite podcast app. Then we can help even more people discover the connection between what they eat and how they feel. If you yourself have a question that you would like to ask us, I invite you to join our private Dishing Up Nutrition Facebook community. Just search Dishing Up Nutrition on Facebook. Then once you've joined, feel free to ask whatever is on your mind. Thanks for joining me today.

Join Our Dishing Up Nutrition Facebook Group