How Living In A Digital World Impacts Your Vision – Invite Health Podcast, Episode 1
Today, we are living in a digital world where escaping your screen can seem impossible. Here are some concerns you need to know about regarding your vision.
Tag: eye health
Protect Your Eyes from Digital Strain with These Vision Nutrients
Photo by John Schnobrich on Unsplash Written by Luke Kornblatt In the age of modern technology, it has become almost impossible to avoid the constant exposure to the screens of electronic devices. Whether it be from a cell phone, a tablet, a computer, or a …
Why Include a Vision Nutrient, Lutein, in a Multiple Vitamin?
Written By Karan R Gregg Aggarwala, MS, PhD
Karan R Gregg Aggarwala holds a PhD and a Master’s of Science Degree in Vision Science from the State University of New York College of Optometry. He completed a post-doctoral fellowship in nutritional optometry under the guidance of Dr. Benjamin C. Lane of Lake Hiawatha, NJ. He has worked as a medical writer and associate medical director in the NY area since 2009. Meet Dr. Gregg for a free nutritional consultation at our 72nd Street retail location in Manhattan, New York.
What are the benefits of Lutein?
Lutein, a known nutrient for vision health, has also emerged as a major player for brain health, supporting memory functions throughout our lifespan, especially during childhood and the aging process. In our retina, an essential region for crystal clear vision, the concentration of two carotenoids – Lutein and Zeaxanthin (abbreviated L + Z) – are essential for ongoing vision health. They are so important to vision that they are commonly referred to as macular pigments. The macula is a filter that helps protect the eye.†
Here are the Top 10 Nutrients for Healthy Vision. Are you incorporating enough? >>
Healthy, robust macular tissue, rich in L + Z, has key functions, including filtering out blue light and focusing on objects for our sharpest vision (such as in reading a newspaper). Blue light is unstable and exposure is everywhere, even on your cell phone or TV screen. If it penetrates deep into our eyes, it damages the many small organs in our retina that are required for vision. Having a thicker macular tissue shields from blue light and this robustness is largely due to its L + Z content.†
What could restoring Lutein do for vision health?
L + Z levels decline with age largely due to a decreasing ability to absorb sufficient quantities from foods. Research shows that restoring L + Z levels through supplementation reinforces macular health and supports and even improves fine vision. Interestingly, the amount of L + Z in our eyes is reflected by the concentration in our blood plasma and this also reflects the concentration in our brain. Lutein is the dominant protective carotenoid pigment in the brain. Using up L + Z in our eyes, due to blue light exposure, depletes the Lutein level of our brain, which can eventually impact memory. Research shows that adequate Lutein in the brain is necessary for ongoing memory functions.†
Supplementing with L + Z is shown to improve brain health and memory functions, especially in aging adults. To help ensure adequate intake, we have included natural sourced L + Z in our Multiple-Vitamin, Mineral formulas, as well as our Chewable InVite® Multiple for Kids.†
Questions about Lutein or Multivitamins? Leave us a comment below to join the conversation!
What You Need to know about Macular Degeneration
[sgmb id=”1″] According to the American Macular Degeneration Foundation, Macular Degeneration is an incurable eye disease caused by the deterioration of the central portion of the retina (the inside back layer of the eye that records the images we see and sends them through the …
Healthy Vision by Jerry Hickey, R.Ph.
Your eyes are similar to a camera. Like a camera, if any part of your eye becomes damaged, you do not get a clear picture. Some of the common risks that affect your vision are your lifetime exposure to sunlight, your age, and smoking. All …
The Value of Lutein Supplements
Lutein, a nutrient and antioxidant found in foods such as spinach, kale, collard greens, and egg yolks and extracted from marigolds to make dietary supplements, has been studied as a critical component for maintaining good vision health. A large government study has found that a daily combination of dietary supplements (including Lutein) reduces the risk of a chronic eye disease known as age related macular degeneration from progressing to an advanced stage where there is a risk of blindness.
Studies
Other studies have suggested Lutein can improve vision in healthy adults and improve age-related cognition. When consumed, Emily Y. Chew, deputy clinical director at the federal National Eye Institute explains, the two nutrients Lutein and its close relative Zeaxanthin, often referred to as macular carotenoids, are deposited in the center of the retina, where they protect sensitive eye cells from incoming light. These nutrients are believed to serve as antioxidants in the eye by protecting the cells from damage by oxidation, she adds.
In a federally funded 4,203 person study published earlier this year in the *Journal of the American Medical Association, Lutein and Zeaxanthin when taken along with vitamins C and E, zinc and copper helped prevent the progression of this eye disease that is common in the elderly (macular degeneration) in people who already have it, says Dr. Chew, co-author of the study.
In 2010, a study based on a large database of Americans and published in the *Journal of the American Dietetic Association, indicated that the average American was not getting enough Lutein and found the average daily consumption of Lutein was less than a milligram a day. Elizabeth J. Johnson, a scientist at the Jean Mayer U.S Department of Agriculture Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at the Tufts University in Boston, said. An additional study of nearly 300 centenarians and octogenarians in 2013, conducted by Dr. Johnson and published in the Journal of Aging Research found that the higher blood levels of Lutein were linked to better performance on a series of brain-function tests, like word-association. Dr. Johnson explains, “If you have more Lutein in the brain, it’s likely that you have better cognition.”
For more information or studies on this nutrient and antioxidant, please click here!