Tips for Good Eye Care

by

Dr Geeta Asthana
General
Protect your eyes from the harmful effects of the sun, as it is one of the risk
factors for developing Cataract - invest in a good pair of sunglasses.
Wear protective eyewear when participating in contact sports.
Wash your eyes at bedtime to remove the dust and the dirt collected through
out the day.
Never wipe your eyes with a towel, handkerchiefs, and any other clothe used
by others infections like Trachoma are spread that way. The same goes for
brushes used to apply mascara and eyeliner.
Avoid use of Kajal, Surma or any other material in the eye, as these have no
medicinal values.
Don't rub your eyes, especially when your hands are dirty.
Have adequate sleep.
Have a healthy diet.
Have regular eye check-ups conducted by a reliable optician.
Reading habits
Ensure adequate and proper lighting. Dont read in your shadow, flickering or
dim light.
Hold the book as far from your eyes as comfortable reading allows.
Maintain good body posture; never read lying down.
Don't read in moving vehicles.
Give rest to the eye frequently when reading or doing close eye work by either
closing the eye or looking at a distant object like green trees for a minute.
While watching television
Make sure the room isn't completely dark.
Don't sit too close to the screen. A good thumb rule is to sit 1/3 to 1/2 the
distance in feet of the screen size in inches.
Avoid TV sets with flickering or blurred images.
Watch TV in moderation.
While Working with computer
Blink often. This moisturises and refreshes the eyes.
Take frequent breaks -- gaze into a distance every 15-20 minutes.
Adjust your monitor such that when you're sitting normally, you can look
straight ahead and see just over the top of it.
Make sure there's no strong light hitting you, either from a light source directly
facing you, or from glare on the screen.

Eye Exercises (Recommended duration: 5 minutes)

Trataka (fixed gazing) - a well-known Yogic practice - strengthens the eye
muscles and helps to secure proper fixation and accommodation considered
to be so essential for good sight. Tratakas should be done without blinking.
Do each of the following Trataka 5 to 6 times.
o Keeping face forward; fix eyes on the end of your right shoulder
o Keeping face forward; fix eyes on the end of your left shoulder
o Focus eyes on the tip of the nose
o Focus eyes in the space between the eyebrows
Strengthening Fixation and Relaxation
o Fix eyes at a small object kept at a distance, then fix at a near object
kept in the same visual line (e.g. tip of a pencil). Dissociate fixation and
refixate for distance and near 10 times.
Improving Convergence power
o Hold a pencil at an arms distance from eyes. Keep on looking at the tip
of the pencil while bringing it nearer slowly to the eyes and try to keep
the tip single, the moment you see double tip that is 2 tips instead of
one repeat again. Do this at least 5 to 10 times.
Improving Amplitude of Gaze
o Fix or make a small black surface as reference as center at wall at the
same level as your eyes. Stand about 4 or 5 feets away from it. Keep
your head still and turn eyes gently to the right bring them back to the
central black spot. Now turn them gently to the left, bring them back to
the central spot. Repeat the same procedure while looking up, down,
and oblique directions. At the end give rotational movement to the eye
by rotating them gently in the circle.
Eye Lid Exercises
o Open and close eyes for 30 seconds
o Close both eyes forcefully for 15 seconds then open. Repeat 4 to 5
times.
o Repeat above exercise with one eye alternately.
o Massage of lids: lightly close the lids and massage from inner side to
outer side for the upper lids and from outer to inner side for the lower
lid. Repeat 5 times.
Relaxation of the eyes by palming
o At the end of the above exercises, cup your arms and place them
against the eyes, which are closed. Dont apply the pressure on eyes.
No light should enter from the sides. Breath slowly and regularly. Relax
your mind and try to think of black color only. After 2 minutes open
your eyes & you will feel fresh with bright vision.

Consult optician immediately if you notice any of these changes in vision

Double or blurred vision
Halos around lights
Inability to see faces clearly
Faded or distorted print
Parts of letters or words are missing
Washed out or faded colors
Bumping into objects or difficulty judging depth perception on
Stairs or curbs
Prolonged difficulty seeing when going from light to dark
Sparks of light appearing off to the side
All people of age 45 and older take the following steps for better eye health
Visit doctor for an annual checkup, which should include tests for glaucoma
and recommendations for lenses for distance viewing, intermediate viewing
(such as a computer screen), and reading.
If you have a family history of eye disease or systemic conditions such as
diabetics or hypertension, you may need to see an eye doctor more
frequently.
Published in Manav Vikas Thye HRDI Newletter of BHEL, 2002