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Health
Yessenia Anderson, 11 Apr 2024

The Top Foods and Nutrients to Help Your Vision

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Goals are typically filled with resolutions tied to health and wellness. This year, your goal to a healthy body can include your vision. According to the U.S Department of Health’s dietary guidelines vitamins and minerals in various foods not only fuel your body but also protect your vision for a lifetime.

Carrots are widely known as the ‘best’ vegetable for the health of your eyes. But there are other foods with nutrients that may be more important for keeping your eyesight keen as you age. Here’s some important information found in the U.S. Department of Health’s dietary guidelines that will help you with your health goals as well as help protect your vision.

Get more Vitamin E

Ensuring you are receiving enough nutrients such as vitamin E is very important to your overall health, as well as healthy vision. With several diets, getting enough Vitamin E can often be hard. Here are several foods high in Vitamin E that you can incorporate into your diet to ensure that you’re getting adequate amounts of this important nutrient:

Sunflower seeds
Almonds
Hazelnuts
Salmon
Avocado

ACE Your Eye Exam

Vitamins A, C, and E form a fitting acronym (ACE), an important one to remember when it comes to your health and vision. A major federal study sponsored by the National Eye Institute showed that the ACE combo, plus zinc, is effective when it comes to lowering risk of advanced age-related macular degeneration (AMD). While these nutrients are not a cure for AMD, taking the following nutritional supplements regularly may help lower your risk:

Vitamin C
Vitamin E
Lutein
Zeaxanthin
Zinc
Copper

Focus on Whole Foods For Better Vision

When it comes to picking your grains, think whole and not refined. On the other end of the spectrum the same can be said about fruit and vegetables; whole fruits and vegetables like oranges, sweet potatoes, kale, tomatoes, grapes and kiwi are great sources of essential nutrients that can help support healthy vision.

Dairy Do’s and Don’ts for Your Vision

Lastly, in order to maintain good eyesight it is recommended to consume milk and dairy products because they contain vitamin A. Vitamin A helps maintains the health of your retinas, the tissue in your eyes that detects light and color. The American Heart Association recommends these dairy products should be reduced fat or fat-free. Be sure to check the nutrition label and ingredient list to determine if your brand or type of milk contains added vitamin A, and in what amount.

In an ever changing food landscape one element to your eye health holds true-an annual comprehensive eye exam is always the best way to evaluate your eye health and gain insight into your overall wellness. A routine eye exam can help detect signs of serious health conditions, like diabetes, a brain tumor, and high cholesterol.

If you or a loved one could benefit from vision insurance, VSP offers vision insurance plans direct to individuals that provide access to high-quality eye care and eyewear at the lowest out-of-pocket costs. Enrolling is simple, learn more about VSP Individual Vision Plans and find the right eye doctor for you.

Information received through VSP Individual Vision Plans’ social media channels is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice, medical recommendations, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.