The old wives tale of eating carrots to improve your eye health is just that, a tale.
Even a poor diet provides an ample amount of beta carotene to contribute to eye health.
So, what should you be eating to preserve your eye health now and into the future?
According to Dr. David Kading, there are two factors when it comes to nutrition and eye health. First, you want to eat foods that will benefit your retinal health through the preservation of the macula. You also want to eat foods that will maintain quality moisture and prevent dryness.
Two types of foods that Dr. Kading recommends are good quality fish, which contains omega-3s (or pure omega-3 supplements) and red, orange and yellow vegetables, which provide provide zeaxanthin and lutein and protect your macula.
Why is this important?
Macular degeneration causes you to lose your central vision. The "garbage disposal" of the eyes isn't as effective at getting rid of old cells. Much like any other disease, macular degeneration isn't a result of you doing something wrong one time, but rather an accumulation of factors (including blue light exposure).
In order to avoid macular degeneration, you need to support the protective layers of the eye, the macular pigment. Zeaxanthin and lutein are superb components for helping to boost the macular pigment.
Listen in as Dr. Kading joins host Lisa Davis to explain more about which nutrients are best for preserving eye health.
Selected Podcast
Eating Clean for Optimal Eye Health
Featured Speaker:
Dr. Dave Kading is an optometrist in Seattle with Specialty Eyecare Group, a member of Vision Source. He likes to take chances if it will push his patients and the profession forward.
He completed a yearlong residency in Cornea and Contact Lenses following graduation from Pacific University.
Since 2007, Dr. Dave and his wife Dr. Kristi Kading have grown and developed their practice into a two location four-doctor practice that encompasses primary care and specializes in dry eye, custom contact lenses, binocular vision and anterior and posterior disease management.
Dr. Kading’s emphasis is on keratoconus and Anterior Segment Disease, Meibomian Gland Dysfunction and Dry Eye. Although he treats patients with all types of disease, his main goal is prevention and cessation of progression of all disease states.
Dr. Kading hosts a one-year anterior segment post graduate fellowship that focuses on dry eye and contact lens management. He welcomes and teaches interns from five different optometry schools into his practice. He enjoys conducting clinical research within his practice, he has written hundreds of articles and papers, and has given several hundred lectures. He has a regular Video Column called Clinical Insights, a written column in Contact Lens Spectrum, and an email column in Contact Lens Today.
He also owns a company with Dr. Mile Brujic called Optometric Insights that accelerates success for ODs and students.
Above all things, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Dr. Kristi Kading and their two daughters.
David Kading, OD
Dr. Dave Kading is an optometrist in Seattle with Specialty Eyecare Group, a member of Vision Source. He likes to take chances if it will push his patients and the profession forward. He completed a yearlong residency in Cornea and Contact Lenses following graduation from Pacific University.
Since 2007, Dr. Dave and his wife Dr. Kristi Kading have grown and developed their practice into a two location four-doctor practice that encompasses primary care and specializes in dry eye, custom contact lenses, binocular vision and anterior and posterior disease management.
Dr. Kading’s emphasis is on keratoconus and Anterior Segment Disease, Meibomian Gland Dysfunction and Dry Eye. Although he treats patients with all types of disease, his main goal is prevention and cessation of progression of all disease states.
Dr. Kading hosts a one-year anterior segment post graduate fellowship that focuses on dry eye and contact lens management. He welcomes and teaches interns from five different optometry schools into his practice. He enjoys conducting clinical research within his practice, he has written hundreds of articles and papers, and has given several hundred lectures. He has a regular Video Column called Clinical Insights, a written column in Contact Lens Spectrum, and an email column in Contact Lens Today.
He also owns a company with Dr. Mile Brujic called Optometric Insights that accelerates success for ODs and students.
Above all things, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Dr. Kristi Kading and their two daughters.