Eye Circles
By Mark A Robbins
There is nothing more that can change your look than having tired looking, gloomy eyes. If you always find yourself flinching whenever you look in the mirror because of your zombie-look due to the dark circles under your eyes, then it's time to take action. Unless Halloween is just around the corner and you are planning to sport that look, then there is no excuse for you to let those dark circles stay.
There are different causes of dark under eye circles. One is genetics. Dark circles are very common among families with fair skin. Genetics is a very formidable enemy but it is not something you cannot find a way around with. Since this is a problem you've been born with, the best treatment for you is the use of eye cream products. An eye cream for dark circles is laden with ingredients that can help change the pigmentation of your skin.
Another reason for dark under eye circles is accumulated blood which leaked through the fragile capillaries around our eye area. Again, one way to treat this problem is to use an eye cream. This time though, it is best to look for an eye cream that can help dissolve the clotted blood on the area and not change the pigmentation of the skin.
Then again, prevention is always better than cure so it is wise to adapt healthy habits to prevent the development of this problem or to stop it from getting severe. One tip is to develop a good sleeping habit. Having eight hours of sleep every night is important because it gives our eyes and the skin around it to rest. Because the capillaries around our eyes are very sensitive, overexerting our eyes like staying up for long hours at night or reading when there is not enough light can cause the capillaries to burst and blood to leak and clot under our eye area.
You can also take vitamin K which helps in repairing damaged blood vessels and encourages circulation of blood. In addition to this, this vitamin also helps in reducing the possibilities of having eye puffiness. Vitamin K is often found on fruits like avocados, kiwis, and leafy green vegetables.
You should also add foods rich in vitamin A in your diet which also helps in repairing damaged skin tissues. Foods like liver, carrots, green vegetables, mangoes, cantaloupe, peaches, and pumpkins are examples.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6657150Measuring Your Level of Vision
By Craig Leaver
One area of the sight test that is always misunderstood by the patient is in regard to explaining whether your eyesight has got better or worse and does that mean the eyeglasses need changing?
There are two related, but very distinct ways to talk about and describe your eyesight. One is to talk about what your prescription is and how it has changed. The other is to talk about what line you can see on the sight test chart. The two are linked, but a change in one does not necessarily mean a change in the other. I often say to my patients "It doesn't matter what prescription is in your specs as long you can see the chart. It's when you can't see the chart, despite what we put in your eyeglasses, that we have a problem."
The chart usually used is a called a Snellen chart. It is named after a Dutch eye doctor called Hermann Snellen who designed it in 1862. The letters are large at the top and get gradually smaller as you move down the chart. The thickness of the lines that make up the letters, is equal to the thickness of the spaces between the lines. The height and width of the letters is five times the width of the lines.
You will have heard the phrase "20/20". This is usually understood to mean perfect vision. In fact, most people with perfect vision have eyesight better than 20/20. It means that you can see, from 20 feet, what you should be able to see from 20 feet. We now actually use 6/6 instead of 20/20. This represents the change from feet to meters (20 feet equals 6 meters). If you can see 6/5(very good eyesight), this means you can see, from 6 meters, what you should have to get to 5 meters to be able to see. If you have 6/60 (poor eyesight), it means you have to be 6 meters away to see what you should be able to see from 60 meters. There are different levels in between.
The first measure is called vision. This is a measure of what you can see without any help at all. For someone who doesn't need glasses and has no eye health problems, it is usually 6/6 or a little better. As your prescription gets stronger, the second number gets higher. The top letter of the chart is normally 6/60. Needing eyeglasses is not the only cause for this number to be higher. If you have eye problems, you may not have a prescription but still only be able to see the bigger letters. This is where the term visual acuity becomes important.
Your visual acuity tells us how well you can see with the perfect prescription in your glasses. If you have something wrong with your eyes such as cataract or macular degeneration, then even with the best possible pair of specs for you, you may only see some of the larger letters on the chart. Exactly how far down the chart you can see with the best spectacles is your visual acuity.
So, when your optician tells you your eyes have changed; before you buy a new pair of designer glasses, you need to know, is it your prescription and/or your acuity that has changed. If it's just a change in your prescription, that's fine. If it is a drop in your visual acuity, you need to find out why.
Ways to Ruin Your EyeSight
By Sue S Smith
We are always talking about eye exercises to improve vision, or eye exercises to promote good eye health, but what about the many ways that we ruin our eyesight from day to day? What causes vision problems in the first place? Since everyone is into "prevention" these days, I came up with the following list of the four biggest "Ways to Ruin Your Eyesight" in hopes that we can better minimize or avoid them to cut down on their effects. So, here are four ways to ruin your eyesight:
1. Wear Glasses or contacts - According to the infamous eye-care physician, Dr. Bates, if glasses are worn continuously over time, poor vision will generally become worse. Essentially, what glasses do is lock the eyes into their refractive state and in order to see through your lenses you have to maintain the poor vision that the lenses are designed to correct. Dr. Bates was a stanch believer in vision therapy using eye exercises to achieve vision without glasses.
2. Eat Sugary foods - Eating sugary foods is bad for the eyesight and promotes aging. Although glucose is an important source of energy for the body's cells, too much glucose in the blood for a long time can cause damage to many parts of the body, including the heart, kidneys, blood vessels and the small blood vessels in the eyes.
3. Watch a lot of TV, Work continuously the Computer, and Play hours of video games without taking breaks - If you watch or read a lot of things that require close up vision, you are probably near-sighted. The reason for this is because you are spending too many hours focusing on objects close up, so your eyes have lost the ability to focus long-range. This is why most articles about eye exercises say to stop from time to time throughout the day (every 30 minutes) and focus on something far away to balance this out. Note that many children who are encouraged to sit in front of a T.V. or a video game player without taking adequate breaks to train the eye to refocus, are the most prone to having eye problems. If you have children, make sure that you give them a break from the T.V. or video games every 30 minutes and give them eye exercises for kids.
4. Smoke Cigarettes - The chemicals in cigarette smoke (around 4000 of them) get into the bloodstream of smokers and may induce damage to the macula, at the back of the eye. This damage results in macular degeneration and blindness over time. If you want good eye health, stop smoking!
Even though we do our best, eye exercises can only do so much for the health of the human eye. We all need to take care not to exasperate eye problems by engaging in bad habits on a daily basis. This includes making sure our diets are rich in foods that support good eye health, or that good vitamins for the eyes are considered as a supplement.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/665047315 Things Your Eyes are Saying about
Your Health
By Edward Lewis
We know that our bodies talk to us about our health through visible channels like our skin, nails,teeth and of course our eyes too. Here are a list of 15 possible things that your eyes are reflecting on the condition of the rest of your body.
- Bloody eye
Conjunctiva, is the transparent outer layer that is nourished by numerous tiny blood vessels. If they burst, blood will drift on the white of the eye (sclera) turning it red. This can be caused by a blow to the eye or in rare instances, a sign of severe high blood pressure or a platelet disorder that interferes with blood clotting. Sleep deprivation can also cause bloodshot eyes. - Floaters
Floaters look like tiny particles or lines drifting all across the eye. They are generally harmless as they come and go. However they may be sending a retinal detachment message when they don't leave, but stay visible most of the time. - Sudden double vision, dim vision, or loss of vision
These are part of the warning signs of a stroke. There are other signs such as slurred speech, numbness or weakness of the face or limbs, typically on just one side of the body, loss of coordination, dizziness or a headache. - Bulging eyes
Eyes that appear to bulge is evidence of hyperthyroidism, an over-active thyroid gland. An imbalance of thyroid hormones causes tissues surrounding the eye to swell, making it look like the eyeball has protruded which can be a ghastly sight. - Droopy eyelid
In rare cases it is an indication of a brain tumor or a neuromuscular autoimmune disease known as myasthenia gravis which weakens muscles throughout the body. - Unequal pupil
Our pupils are about the same size and respond similarly to light. If one pupil becomes larger than the other, it many be due to medications, stroke, brain disorders or multiple sclerosis. This condition is known as anisocoria and is caused by the dilation of the affected eye, which is an abnormal response due to an error message received by the brain. However vision is not affected. - Brown ring
This is known as the Kayser-Fleischer ring which is a formation of brown ring on the edge of the iris caused by copper deposits. It is a sign of a rare hereditary disorder known as Wilson's disease which causes copper to accumulate in various tissues, including the inner surface of the cornea. Wilson's disease can be fatal if untreated. - Thickened eyelid
A rare phenomenon that points to a rare hereditary disorder marked by the growth of tumors along nerve fibers. - Yellow eyes
This is a sign of liver impairment. It appears in newborn babies with immature liver function known as jaundice. In adults, problems with the liver, gallbladder, or bile ducts can turn the conjunctiva yellowish. The color is caused by the buildup of bilirubin, a compound made by the breakdown of hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying molecule inside red blood cells. - Disappearing or thinning eyebrows
If the outer third portion of your eyebrow begins to disappear, it is a common sign of hypothyroidism, an under-active thyroid gland. - A stubborn stye
A stye is like a pimple and when it doesn't clear up in three months, or keeps recurring in the same location, it could be a rare type of life-threatening skin cancer called sebaceous gland carcinoma. - Burning eyes or blurry vision while looking at a computer
This is quite obviously eye strain resulting from intense focus without blinking. In addition the glare from the monitor screen also add strain. Take breaks and look away from the screen. Use a anti-glare firm to protect your eyes and pay attention to the amount of light in the room, it mustn't be too bright or too dark. - Sudden difficulty in shutting the eye, inability to control tears
Bell's palsy, or facial paralysis is a temporary paralysis that affects half the face. Experts have linked this condition to a viral or bacterial infection makes the facial nerve swell or become inflamed. Diabetics, pregnant women or those sick with a cold or flu are more likely to experience Bell's palsy. It is not fatal and will go away by itself. - Blurred vision in a diabetic
Complications from diabetes can affect the eye. The most severe being diabetic retinopathy which affects the circulatory system of the retina. It is the main cause of blindness in diabetics. - Dry eye and dry mouth
Sjogren syndrome is an autoimmune disorder that manifests through common symptoms like dryness of the eyes and mouth. Eyes may itch or feel gritty which adds to the discomfort.
