Written by Rebecca Budde, SIU School of Medicine
Keeping your eyes healthy isn’t just about getting an eye exam to determine if you need a new prescription for your glasses. Problems with your eyes can often mean that something else might be going wrong with your health.
The National Eye Institute (NEI) gives the following guidelines for optimum eye health:
Get a dilated eye exam
This painless test is one way to catch certain eye diseases early, especially the ones that have no warning signs, such as glaucoma, diabetic eye disease and age-related macular degeneration. Your eye care professional will place special drops in your eye that will widen the pupil and allow him/her to examine your retina and look for signs of damage or other problems. Your vision will remain blurry for several hours before returning to normal.
Live a healthy lifestyle
Conditions such as diabetes and hypertension can affect vision. Living a healthy lifestyle, maintaining a healthy weight and eating right can stave these conditions and keep your eyes healthy. Studies show that smoking is just as bad for your eyes as it is for the rest of your body, so put out the cigarettes.
Know your family history
Not only do you inherit your baby blues or hazel hue from your parents, but you may inherit aspects of your eye health from them as well. Since many eye diseases are hereditary, talk to your family to determine if you are at a higher risk for developing eye disease.
Use protective eyeware
Every 13 minutes, an ER in the United States treats a sports-related eye injury, according to the NEI. Eye injuries are also very common among US workers. Using protective eyewear for sports and potentially hazardous work can greatly reduce the risk of eye injury.
Wear sunglasses
The sun is shining; it’s time to get out the shades! Look for sunglasses that block at least 99% of UVA and UVB radiation. The sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays are harmful to the eye. In fact, approximately 20% of cataract cases are caused by extended UV exposure. The sun’s harmful rays can also cause macular degeneration (damage to the retina that can eventually lead to blindness) and pterygium (a tissue growth over the white part of the eye that change the shape of the eye).
Learn more about the NEI and Healthy Vision Month at  https://www.nei.nih.gov/HVM.
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