- Zinc: is a mineral that is good for your eyes and your whole body. One thing zinc does in our bodies is to bring Vitamin A stored in the liver to our retinas. People with severe vitamin A deficiencies can have trouble seeing at night and can go blind altogether - so zinc does an important job! Good sources of zinc include beef, pork, lamb, oysters, eggs, shellfish, milk, peanuts, whole grains and wheat germ.
- Zinc helps vitamin A create melanin (a pigment that protects the eyes) and may shield the eyes from age-related macular degeneration. The American Optometric Association recommends 40 to 80 mg a day to slow the progression.
Zinc
Zinc is a mineral that helps maintain the health of the retina, cell membranes, and protein structure of the eye.
Zinc allows vitamin A to travel from the liver to the retina to produce melanin. Melanin is a pigment that protects the eyes from UV light.
Zinc supplementation may help people who have AMD or are at risk of developing the condition. According to the American Optometric Association, taking 40–80 mg of zinc each day, alongside certain antioxidants, could slow the progression of advanced AMD by 25%. It could also reduce visual acuity loss by 19%.
Alpha tocopherol is a form of vitamin E that has particularly powerful antioxidant properties.
Antioxidants help fight free radicals, which damage tissues throughout the body. Sometimes, free radicals may damage proteins within the eye. This damage can result in the development of cloudy areas — cataracts — on the lens of the eye.
A 2015 meta-analyses concluded that a high intake of vitamin E, whether through the diet or supplementation, may reduce the risk of developing cataracts.
4. Vitamin C
Apart from its other roles in the body, this vitamin is particularly important for reducing oxidative stress in the eyes. Oxygen is broken down into free radicals at a higher rate in your eyes, making them susceptible to damage. Your eyes also have different types of collagen in them, and vitamin C is essential for the formation of collagen. Vitamin C was also one of the ingredients in the AREDS formulation.
Vitamin C plays an important role in the eye itself, protecting against UV light damage. While the concentration of vitamin C in the eyes lessens with age, diet and supplementation can counteract this.
Vitamin C also helps protect against oxidative damage. Oxidative damage is a
key factor in two of the most common age-related cataracts: cortical and nuclear cataracts. Cortical cataracts develop on the edges of the lens, while nuclear cataracts occur deep in their center.A 10-year longitudinal study investigated different factors that may help prevent nuclear cataract development. The study involved more than 1,000 pairs of female twins. At the end of the study period, participants who consumed more vitamin C showed a 33% reduction in the risk of cataract progression. They also had clearer lenses overall.
Vitamin A
Vitamin A plays a crucial role in vision by maintaining a clear cornea, which is the outside covering of your eye.
This vitamin is also a component of rhodopsin, a protein in your eyes that allows you to see in low light conditions (
1 ).Vitamin A deficiency is rare in developed countries, but if unaddressed, it can lead to a serious condition called xerophthalmia.
Xerophthalmia is a progressive eye disease that begins with night blindness. If vitamin A deficiency continues, your tear ducts and eyes can dry out. Eventually, your cornea softens, resulting in irreversible blindness (
1 ,2 ).Vitamin A may also help protect against other eye afflictions. Some studies suggest that diets high in vitamin A may be associated with a reduced risk of cataracts and AMD (
3 ,4 ,5 ,6 ).For general eye health, vitamin-A-rich foods are recommended over supplements. Sweet potatoes are an excellent source, as are leafy green vegetables, pumpkins, and bell peppers (
1
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