There are over 2 billion people in the world who suffer from some type of eye conditions. Over a billion of those cases are expected to be preventable using early diagnosis and lifestyle changes. That is where holistic eye care comes to play. This type of treatment focuses on your life and the doctors work with you to help you live a healthier life without having to change your entire lifestyle.
Unlike traditional medicine, holistic eye care keeps the patient in the decision making loop and allows them to choose how they want to treat their problems. This inclusive practice helps patients get better results from their treatments and feel better about their eye care experience. So, now that you know the basics of holistic eye care. Let’s take a look at some of the most common eye conditions and how holistic eye care can help with those problems.
Natural Approaches to Reducing Intraocular Pressure in Glaucoma
There are two natural approaches when it comes to controlling your intraocular pressure (IOC). You can make changes to your diet and that can help you improve your condition in general. Or you can make changes to your lifestyle. Based on the severity of your glaucoma, you may even be needed to incorporate both these changes to properly manage your condition. Do note that all the changes and recommendations mentioned here are natural and easy to incorporate into your lifestyle. So, let’s take a look at the different lifestyle and dietary changes that can help you naturally reduce your IOC.
Dietary Recommendations For Reducing Intraocular Pressure
Ginkgo Biloba: Ginkgo biloba is one of the best alternative and natural treatments for glaucoma. It certainly helps reduce intraocular pressure with its strong antioxidant properties. Ginkgo biloba is different from other antioxidant rich food sources because it interacts differently with your body. Ginkgo biloba works at the mitochondrial level and it protects the mitochondrial membrane against damage instead of just neutralising free radicals in your body. Thanks to the anti-inflammatory and vasodilatory properties of Ginkgo biloba, it is an effective way to reduce IOC. And the best part is you can just easily start adding it to your diet.
Omega 3: Omega 3 also known as fatty acids that is most commonly found in fish is a great way to reduce and manage IOC. Omega 3 works inside your body on a cellular level, especially in your retina and helps with rhodopsin regeneration. The balance of Omega 3 and Omega 6 which are polyunsaturated fats inside your body helps improve the effect of Omega 3 on your IOC. If your Omega 6 levels are higher than Omega 3, it could negatively impact the effects Omega 3 has on your IOC. Simply adding more sea food into your diet or just going for Omega 3 supplements can help you get the aforementioned benefits.
Vitamin A: Vitamin A is one of the best nutrients for your eyes. Even if you don’t have glaucoma, vitamin A can help you maintain your eye health. For patients with glaucoma and increased IOC, vitamin A helps reduce it and helps the normal functioning of your retina thanks to its antioxidant properties. However, it is important to note that while vitamin A is great for your eyes, having too much of it, in any form from food or from supplements, can negatively impact your eyes. Excess consumption can increase your intracranial hypertension and even cause night blindness.
Bilberry: Bilberry extracts have great antioxidant properties and it helps provide a neuroprotective effect on your retina. It also stops ganglion cell death caused by glaucoma in your retina. Bilberry extracts are also very good at helping you protect your optic nerve from damage. Overall, bilberry is great for maintaining your eye health and adding it to your diet can help you relieve IOC and protect your retina and optic nerve.
Melatonin: Melatonin helps improve your circadian rhythm and treats sleep disturbances. Even though it may seem unrelated to glaucoma, melatonin can actually help reduce IOC in a unique way. The thing is, glaucoma often causes or is caused by psychological problems like anxiety / depression or sleep disorders. Melatonin helps level out these disturbances and it even works as an antioxidant on your ocular tissue helping you get a neuroprotective effect in your retina. For ageing patients that suffer from both sleep disturbances and glaucoma, melatonin supplements are a great way to keep both conditions in check.
Lifestyle Changes For Reducing Intraocular Pressure
Sleeping Positions: Sleeping positions can determine your progression of glaucoma. As unbelievable as it may sound. Sleeping on one side preferentially actually causes an increase in IOC. This is mainly because the IOC peaks at night. If not kept under control for patients that have glaucoma or are at a higher risk of glaucoma, the wrong sleeping positions can speed up the progression of glaucoma. So, to help your chances against glaucoma progression, you should not sleep on the side too often.
Exercise: Exercising has positive benefits for your health, especially when it comes to your blood pressure. Reduction in your blood pressure also corresponds to reduction in IOC. And the best part is that regular moderate exercising can actually help you get the reduction in IOC you need to keep a check on your glaucoma progression. However, you should note that you are required to perform moderate exercising, so just walking won’t work. You need to perform some physical exercises or some sets of HIIT exercises to get the best benefits.
Weight: Studies have found that there is a direct correlation to your predisposition to glaucoma based on your BMI or body weight. If you have a BMI less than 18.5 or more than 30, you are more likely to get glaucoma. So, in order to keep your IOC in check and stop glaucoma progression, you either need to gain healthy weight or lose weight. If you are in either category make sure you follow all the advice mentioned on this page to keep yourself safe from glaucoma progression.
Yoga: Yoga is a great partner exercise that you can practice if you have or are at risk of glaucoma. As mentioned previously, glaucoma can often lead to psychological conditions like anxiety and depression, which cause sleep disturbances. These disturbances can cause an increase of cortisol levels in your body, which can negatively impact your IOC. Yoga and meditation can actually help you keep these levels in check because they have a calming effect on your mind and body. Performing yoga counts as exercise that not only works out your body but also helps you centre your mind. So, practicing yoga can help you with controlling your IOC and stay healthier mentally.
Stopping Smoking: Smoking causes free radicals to freely roam around your body. It affects your ocular tissues and increases inflammation in your body. Increased inflammation creates a risk of increased IOC and progression of glaucoma. Though the direct correlation of stopping smoking and a decrease in IOC is still being investigated. It is just generally good medical advice to quit smoking as even after stopping the effects of smoking can last long in your body.
Plant-based Remedies for Conjunctivitis: Fact or Fiction?
Plant-based remedies for conjunctivitis exist, so it’s a fact. There are a lot of options when it comes to natural plant-based treatment of conjunctivitis. Here are some of the most common treatment options that are easily available for everyone to try. Also, while you are using these remedies, do note that one of the key things for conjunctivitis is that you should wash your sheets and pillow covers. Otherwise the condition can reoccur constantly. With that being said, let’s take a look at the common plant-based remedies for conjunctivitis.
Ashwagandha: Ashwagandha is an ayurvedic ingredient that has anti-inflammatory properties that can also help against infections. Adding ashwagandha to your diet when you have conjunctivitis can help you relieve the symptoms and treat the infection quicker. However, you should note that ashwagandha works better with viral conjunctivitis than bacterial conjunctivitis.
Neem: For bacterial conjunctivitis, you should use neem. Just having neem extracts or neem leaves with your meals can help with your bacterial conjunctivitis. This is mainly because neem has powerful antibacterial properties and can help you treat your symptoms quickly. It can also help reduce the swelling in your eyes.
Turmeric: Turmeric has a natural ingredient known as curcumin and it is a potent antioxidant that helps against inflammation and injuries. Just adding turmeric powder to your food can help you get its benefits. However, most readily available turmeric powder has only about 3% curcumin per the packet weight. So, if your symptoms don’t die out with turmeric, you can go for ayurvedic medicine that has a higher concentration of curcumin.
Green Leafy Vegetables: Green leafy vegetables are just good for your health regardless if you are healthy or sick. They have a ton of nutrients in them that can keep you healthy or help you get better. In case of conjunctivitis, green leafy vegetables have antioxidant properties that help with the inflammation. They also have the nutrients needed for your body to naturally beat the infection be it viral or bacterial.
Probiotics: Probiotics are an effective way to improve your symptoms of conjunctivitis. They help with healthy production of tears in your eyes that keep your eyes moisturised. Additionally, probiotics also help improve your gut health, which helps your body fight off infections. Probiotics can easily be added to your diet and it can help you ward off the infection and keep it from coming back if you have them regularly.
Lifestyle Modifications for Managing Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Age-related macular degeneration can be kept in check and controlled with certain lifestyle and dietary modifications. It is important to note that the changes are not to help you treat the condition, but they are rather there to help you keep the condition from worsening and to help you remain independent. If you are at risk for AMD, you can start with these modifications too. If you already have AMD, you can start with these modifications and also get professional holistic eye care help from Sanjeevan for perfect eyesight to better manage your condition. With that being said, let’s take a look at the different modifications that can help you manage AMD.
Bodyweight Management: While maintaining your body weight is not directly related to managing AMD, it can certainly help you with the complications of AMD. This is mainly because being overweight creates a risk factor for several health conditions like cardiovascular diseases and uncontrolled blood pressure. So, keeping your weight in check is just generally sound health advice, which would also help you better manage AMD because you would have less risk factors to complicate your AMD.
Better Diet: Antioxidant rich diet is crucial for you to keep yourself safe from AMD complications. Antioxidants, especially carotenoids, help reduce the effects of free radicals in your body and protect your macula from further degeneration. Along with antioxidants, you should also improve your nutrient intake every meal with a focus on vitamin A, C, E, and zinc. These nutrients will help you manage your AMD from progressing further.
Blood Pressure Management: Managing your blood pressure can help you with choroidal blood flow. With better blood flow, your body will be able to fight against the degeneration in your macula and stop its progression. It will also be able to reduce your risk for other eye conditions on top of AMD like diabetic retinopathy. If left unchecked, hypertension can increase your IOC and cause rapid progression of AMD causing complete loss of central vision or blindness.
Stopping Smoking: This is just generally good health advice, but with patients with AMD, it can actually help you manage your condition better. Smoking has a lot of negative effects on your health, and on average smokers have twice the risk of getting AMD than non-smokers. Quitting smoking can help you reduce your risk of AMD and even stop its quick progression. Cigarette smoke has oxidants that affect your retina and also irritate it. Your body fights against this irritation with an autoimmune response that causes inflammation in your eyes, which is also harmful for your eye health. Smoking is the biggest modifiable risk factor for AMD, so quitting is in your best interest to keep your eyes healthy as you age.
Using Sun Protection: Sunglasses come in handy and protect you against the progression of AMD if you use them regularly. Regardless if you already have the condition or are at a risk of it, you should use sunglasses whenever you are out in the sun. The UV rays from the sun have considerable negative effects on your eyes, so using sun protection is the best way to protect yourself against the damages and keep your eyes safe.
Conclusion
With holistic healthcare you can manage common eye conditions at home. And given these treatment options take your life and lifestyle into account, the success rates are usually higher for patients opting for holistic eye care. So, if you are interested and would like to start taking control of your eye health collaboratively check out Sanjeevan for perfect eyesight. We are one of the top holistic eye care providers in India that work hand-in-hand with our patients to help them manage and treat common eye conditions. You can check out our website to book an appointment today or learn more about the conditions we treat.