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Eye Care

How To Keep Eyes Healthy

You must never take your eyes for granted. Follow the simple steps below to ensure that your eyes stay healthy.

  1. Eat Right

Proper eye health starts with what you eat. Nutrients like lutein, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids, and vitamin C and vitamin E can help in the prevention of age-related vision issues such as cataracts and macular degeneration. To get these nutrients, fill your plate with:

– Pork and oysters

– Oranges and other citrus fruits or juices

– Beans, nuts, eggs, and other non-meat protein sources

– Tuna, salmon, and other oily fish

– Green leafy vegetables such as collards, kale, and spinach

A balanced diet is also important for helping you maintain a healthy weight, which in turn lowers your risk of developing obesity and other related diseases such as type 2 diabetes – the number 1 cause of adult blindness.

  1. Stop Smoking

Smoking makes you more likely to get cataracts, causes macular degeneration, and damages the optic nerve. If you have tried to quit smoking without much success, keep trying. The higher the number of times you try to quit, the higher your chances of success. You can ask your doctor for help with this.

  1. Wearing Sunglasses

The right pair of sunglasses can help protect the eyes from the ultraviolet (UV) from the sun. Too much exposure to UV rays increases your chances of macular degeneration and cataracts.

A good pair of sunglasses is one that blocks between 99 and 100 percent of the UVA & UVB rays. To protect the eyes from the side, wear wraparound lenses. Wear polarized lenses to help reduce glare while driving.

It is also important to find contact lenses that offer UV protection. However, you still need to wear sunglasses for additional protection.

  1. Using Safety Eyewear

If you use airborne or hazardous materials either at home or on the job, it is always advisable to wear protective goggles or safety glasses.

Sports such as lacrosse, racquetball, and ice hockey can lead to eye injuries. Always wear protective eye gear such as ports glasses with polycarbonate lenses or helmets that have protective face masks to help shield the eyes.

  1. Stop Staring at the Computer Screen

If you stare at your phone or computer screen for too long, you can suffer from:

– Headaches

– Dry eyes

– Trouble focusing at a distance

– Shoulder, back, and neck pain

– Blurry vision

– Eyestrain

To ensure that your eyes are adequately protected:

– Blink more if your eyes are dry

– Invest in a comfortable, supportive chair and position it such that your feet are flat on the floor

– Try avoiding glare from lights and windows. You can use an anti-glare screen if necessary

– Move your computer monitor so that the eyes are level with the top of the screen. This will let you look slightly down at your screen

– If eye strain doesn’t go away on its own, talk to your doctor about getting computer glasses

– Ensure that your contacts or glasses prescription is up to date and good for looking at computer screens

– Rest the eyes every 20 minutes. Look 20 feet away for 20 seconds. Get up at least once every 2 hours and take a 15-minute break.

  1. Visit the Eye Doctor Regularly

Everybody requires eye exams regularly, even young children. It lets you see your best and helps protect your sight.

Eye exams are also critical to finding diseases such as glaucoma, which have no symptoms. It is important to ensure that they are spotted early on when they are easier to treat.

How Not To Clean Your Glasses

Cleaning your glasses on a regular basis is essential for having clear vision. However, if you accidentally clean them the wrong way, you can do serious damage to them. Follow the advice below to ensure this doesn’t happen to your glasses.

Eyeglass Cleaners and Cleaning Cloths

Eye Glasses Raleigh NCMost drug and discount stores have cleaning supplies for eyeglasses, including spray cleaners. These are great if you don’t have easy access to dish soap and tap water. If you can’t rinse the lenses first, you can also use the spray to flush visible debris from the lens surfaces.

Do your lenses have anti-reflective (AR) coating? If so, you must choose cleaning products that are safe for these special lens coatings.

If you are using the disposable cleansing wipes, you should remove any dust first. Look for debris and blow it off before using the wipes to cleanse the lenses.

Microfiber cloths are great for removing grime from your glasses. They absorb oil and water, leaving the lenses clean and dry. However, they can quickly become soiled because of the trapped debris and grime. Hand wash them on a regular basis, using the same dish soap mentioned above. Rinse thoroughly and allow to air dry before the next use.

How Can I Remove Scratches From My Glasses?

Unfortunately, that is not really possible. If your lenses are scratched, you can’t un-scratch them. There are some products on the market that are designed to reduce the visibility of lens scratches. The mixed results associated with these waxy substances have left many folks frustrated. Created with various types of wax, the products wear off quickly, particularly in warmer climates and can even damage some special coatings.

Scratched lenses interfere with your ability to see clearly and fail to properly reflect light for the safety of your eyes. The weakened lenses are also less able to withstand impact, which means potential breakage is looming around the corner. For your health and good vision, invest in new lenses if you have noticeable scratches on one or both of your lenses.

When you are shopping around for new glasses, try to purchase lenses with a scratch-resistant coating. Some optical centers include scratches in the warranty. If you have experienced several issues with scratches in the past, get your glasses with an anti-scratch warranty, even if it means going elsewhere to have your prescription filled.

When Professional Cleaning Is Needed

While you can take care of the day to day cleaning and care needs for your glasses, there are times when you need a professional optometrist. If the lenses are fine, but you can’t get the nose pads cleaned or the hinges seem to have minuscule amounts of grime in them, you can use an ultrasonic cleaner to remove the grime. Also, you can replace the nose pads at home.

Protective Storage

Proper eyeglass care is essential to prolonging the life of the lenses and frames. Failure to store them correctly can result in scratches and worse. You should have a clean eyeglass case to put them in next to your bed. If you don’t have one available, open them slightly and place upside down on the table to prevent the glasses from flipping over. Always make sure the lenses are not touching the surface.

Your Glasses Aren’t A One Time Investment

eye exam raleigh ncNo matter what, your glasses are susceptible to some natural wear and tear related to normal use and environmental exposure. Find out about warranties when you purchase your glasses, particularly if you are purchasing glasses for a child or that will be worn in dusty conditions.

These tips will help you to protect and care for your glasses, extending the time you can use a single pair. If you think you might need a new pair of glasses, we welcome you here at Fusion Eye Care in Raleigh, NC. Simply call (919) 977-7480 and schedule your appointment with one of our optometrists today.

Will I Need Glasses After Cataract Surgery?

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Clear Vision after Cataract Surgery

Following cataract surgery, a number of options are available to provide you with clear vision. Advanced lens implants may reduce your dependence upon eyeglasses and contact lenses, or you may prefer eyewear.

To explain, during cataract surgery, your eye doctor will concentrate on two specific issues:

  1. Resolving cloudy vision caused by cataracts
  2. Vision problems caused by the lens power and shape of your eye

Private insurance plans and Medicare typically cover the expense of cataract surgery, along with a single-focus intraocular lens implant – in which a clear lens replaces your opaque lens. However, as your eye doctor performs this surgery, you can also opt to have an additional procedure to improve your vision focus. This can eliminate or reduce your need for eyewear.

Ultimately, you and your eye doctor will decide together upon the most appropriate choice for your personal needs. To make the right decision, it is important to be informed how each option will affect your vision. Here are a few case examples to give you a clearer picture of the possibilities:

Mia:

A true bookworm, Mia is always reading when she is not working in data entry. She has healthy eyes with a mild astigmatism and dislikes wearing eyeglasses. She was just diagnosed with cataracts in both eyes. After cataract surgery, Mia would be very pleased to reduce her dependence upon eyeglasses.

A perfect choice for Mia would be multifocal contact lenses, which enable near and far focus without any cumbersome eyeglasses.

Another option would be a procedure described as a “corneal relaxing incision”. During her cataract surgery, Mia’s eye doctor would make an additional incision in the cornea to reshape it.

Ethan:

Ethan is an avid outdoorsman who has mild astigmatism in both eyes and wears eyeglasses for sharp vision. Recently, he was diagnosed with cataracts in both eyes. He is not bothered with wearing glasses for reading or close tasks, yet he would love to bike, swim and jog without his prescription glasses.

An ideal vision correction for Ethan would be an intraocular lens implant that resolves astigmatism. Called a toric lens, this implant can focus his distance vision and thereby reduce the need for eyeglasses when engaging in outdoor physical activities. Most likely, he will still need reading glasses to see fine print and the computer screen, as a toric lens does not help with both near and distant vision.

Matthew:

Matthew was never a fan of reading glasses. Therefore, for over 15 years, he has worn monovision contact lenses successfully to provide distance for presbyopia. Monovision lenses correct one eye for distance and one eye for near vision. After his cataract surgery, he would like to continue wearing monovision contacts. However, this is not his only option.

Multifocal lenses can be implanted in both of Matthew’s eyes, thereby giving sharp focus for both near and distance in both eyes. Alternatively, his eye doctor can implant one lens for distance and one for near – following the monovision method. The best candidates for this option are generally patients who are accustomed to wearing monovision lenses, such as Matthew. The final choice is a personal one, based on his preferences.

Jerry:

Jerry has worn eyeglasses since he was a young child, and he is the proud owner of many stylish frames. In addition to providing clear eyesight, Jerry’s eyeglasses function as his trademark fashion accessory.

After cataract surgery, he is a good candidate for basic single focus lens implants. These implants will improve Jerry’s visual acuity without eyeglasses, yet he will still need eyewear to focus well on both distance and near tasks. This option is a great match for his personal preferences.

The type of vision correction you choose after your cataract surgery depends upon your ocular condition, individual lifestyle preferences and the professional recommendation of your eye doctor. Quality vision is the objective of every cataract procedure, and there is more than one way to reach this goal!