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CNET
4 days ago
- Health
- CNET
7 Easy Habits That Will Support Your Eye Health This Summer
Your skin isn't the only part of your body that needs to be protected from the sun's UV rays. The same goes for your eyes, especially during the summer months. The World Health Organization reports that 15 million people worldwide are blind from cataracts, and for up to 10% of these people, the cause of their condition may have been exposure to ultraviolet radiation. Fortunately, there are simple habits you can adopt that will keep your eyes healthy and happy as the summer sun beams down. How to protect your eyes from the sun There are plenty of ways to protect your eyes in the heat, from wearing sunglasses to following a balanced diet. Here are some science-backed tips for summer eye care. Wear sunglasses One of the easiest -- and most stylish -- ways to take care of your eyes is by wearing sunglasses during the day. When your eyes aren't protected from the sun, they're exposed to multiple types of UV rays, which can increase your risk of certain diseases, including photokeratitis and cataracts. Westend61/Getty Images Consider polarized lenses: Polarized lenses are designed with a special chemical that filters more light than other sunglasses. They also reduce glare from reflective surfaces, like water and snow, so they're a good option if you spend a lot of time outside. Choose the right lens color: While it may seem like darker lenses would provide more protection from UV rays, the opposite is true. Extremely dark lenses force your pupils to open wider, allowing more sunlight into your eyes. Instead of dark lenses, opt for gray or smoke-colored lenses to get the most sun protection. Keep your eyes hydrated During summer, your eyes can dry out quickly, particularly if you live in a dry climate, sit in air-conditioned spaces regularly or spend lots of time in swimming pools. Dehydrated eyes can have uncomfortable consequences, causing burning, irritation and light sensitivity, which may get worse if you wear contact lenses. Avoid alcohol: Drinking alcohol can also dry out your eyes, so reducing your booze intake may help keep your eyes more lubricated and stave off dehydration. Use eye drops if your eyes are dry: If you have a moderate case of dry eyes, you may find some relief from over-the-counter eye drops. But if the irritation continues, talk to your doctor about getting prescription-strength drops. Read more: Best Nonalcoholic Drinks Eat a balanced diet Following a nutritious diet can also benefit eye health. Specifically, you'll want to aim for a well-balanced meal plan that includes a variety of antioxidant-rich foods. For example, vitamin C may help lower your risk of developing cataracts. Good sources of this vitamin include raw bell peppers, oranges and carrots. Similarly, vitamin E protects your eyes from free radicals, which can damage and break down the tissue in your eyes. You can find vitamin E in seeds, nuts and sweet potatoes. Finally, vitamin A also supports proper eye function and is found in foods like leafy greens and orange vegetables. In contrast, there are also foods that aren't great for your eye health. Sugary drinks and fried foods, for instance, can raise your risk of diabetes and, later, diabetic retinopathy. Limit screen time Staring at a laptop or phone screen for too long can irritate your eyes and lead to eye strain. Common symptoms of eye strain include headaches, light sensitivity, itchy eyes and blurred vision. However, depending on your job, avoiding screen time may not be realistic. However, there are some eye care tactics you can use to limit the effect that digital screens have on your eyes. Notably, the American Optometric Association recommends following the 20-20-20 rule while you're using electronic screens. This means taking a 20-second break from all screens at least once every 20 minutes to look at an object that's 20 feet away. Other strategies to protect your eyes from digital screens include lowering the brightness on your devices, switching to dark mode and wearing blue-light-blocking glasses, though research is iffy on these glasses for eye health. JoseAvoid looking directly at the sun Staring at the sun for too long isn't just uncomfortable -- it can cause serious, and sometimes permanent, damage to your eyes. When the sun's UV rays enter your eyes, they can form free radicals and harm your retinas, potentially causing a condition known as solar or photic retinopathy. Milder symptoms of solar retinopathy can range from watery eyes to eye discomfort to headache. If your case is more severe, you may experience blurred vision or blind spots. For some people, these effects are irreversible. If you've noticed that your vision has worsened after viewing an eclipse or looking at the sun, make an appointment with your doctor as soon as possible. Protect your eyes while outside or playing sports Aside from wearing sunglasses, there are other effective ways to protect your eyes while you're spending time outside. For example, if you're gardening or hiking, you can wear a wide-brimmed hat or visor to keep your eyes covered. If you're headed to the beach or pool, grab a pair of goggles to protect your eyes from the water, salt and chlorine and ward off swimmers' eye. Similarly, if you're playing sports, make sure to put on protective glasses to lower your risk of eye injury. No matter what you're doing, you should also wear sunscreen on your face to prevent burns on your eyelids or the sensitive skin around your eyes. Get quality sleep If you've ever woken up from a poor night's sleep with dry and itchy eyes, you've experienced how a lack of quality sleep can impact your eye health, and science backs that up. In one study, researchers found a correlation between low-quality sleep and dry eye disease, noting that subpar sleep quality can aggravate the effects of DED. Read more: Poor Sleep? Try These Easy Tricks When you're tired, you're also more likely to rub your eyes, which could lead to eye damage or an infection. Separately, not getting enough sleep has been linked to other irritating but nonserious health issues, including myokymia (eye twitching), bloodshot eyes and puffiness and under-eye bags.
Medscape
12-05-2025
- Health
- Medscape
How Climate Change Threatens Eye Health
For 5 months in 2017, farmworker Alka Kamble experienced blurred vision in one of her eyes but didn't consult an ophthalmologist. 'I couldn't afford it and neither did I have the time as I had to work long hours to make ends meet,' she says. Then Kamble saw a flyer for a free eye check-up clinic near her home in Jambhali village in India's Maharashtra state. The doctor there suggested immediate cataract surgery and said that overexposure to solar radiation had likely contributed to her deteriorating eyesight. Kamble, now 55, had for decades worked long hours in the scorching heat without sunglasses or shade. Conditions have worsened as heat waves have intensified in India, she adds. 'The heat has become so unbearable that farmers are finding it difficult even to work for 2 hours in the field during summers.' A number of well-known factors, including exposure to UV radiation, genetics, and aging can lead to cataracts, a condition affecting roughly 94 million people in which the lenses of the eyes get cloudy, causing blurry vision. But in recent years, researchers have found another causative factor for cataracts and other eye disorders: Climate change. Climate change is increasing risk to eye health in multiple ways. First, it is making the planet hotter — Earth's average surface temperature in 2024 was the warmest on record. Body temperatures reaching 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) can cause heatstroke, a condition that disrupts biological processes throughout the body. In the eyes, heatstroke damages the natural defense systems that normally counteract the buildup of harmful molecules called reactive oxygen species, explains Lucía Echevarría-Lucas, an ophthalmologist at the Hospital of La Axarquía in Spain's Málaga province. The eye lens is made up of crystalline proteins that must remain organized to remain transparent. Reactive oxygen species can damage these proteins, 'forming opacities that lead to cataracts,' Echevarría-Lucas says. Since the lens can't regenerate the proteins, the more time one spends in the heat, the greater the risk of developing cataracts. In a study spanning 10 years in southern Spain, Echevarría-Lucas and her colleagues found an additional 370.8 cases of cataracts per 100,000 inhabitants for each degree Celsius rise in the maximum average temperature each year. And though the typical age of onset of cataracts is 60 or older, cataracts in people aged 15-49 were more common in regions where a high percentage of people work in agriculture. Another way global warming is contributing to eye disorders is by increasing our exposure to UV radiation, according to Echevarría-Lucas and study coauthor José María Senciales González, a geographer at the University of Málaga. Some of this is driven by behavior — people tend to spend more time outdoors when it's warm. But in some places, such as Southern California and the Costa del Sol in Spain, hot, dry winds sap from the air water vapor that would normally absorb UV radiation, causing more UV exposure. UV radiation also generates reactive oxygen species that damage the eye lens and can directly damage the DNA of lens cells, Echevarría-Lucas adds. Cataracts are one of the most common causes of vision impairment worldwide. But climate change is also causing an uptick in other eye conditions. These include keratitis, an inflammation of the cornea, the eye's clear, outermost layer; pterygium, an overgrowth of fleshy pink tissue over the white part of the eye (called the sclera); and conjunctivitis, an eye infection or irritation also called pinkeye, notes Yee Ling Wong, an ophthalmologist-in-training at Manchester Royal Eye Hospital in the UK and coauthor of a 2024 overview in the Journal of Climate Change and Health . One 2023 study of nearly 60,000 people in Ürümqi, in northwestern China, found that temperatures exceeding 28.7 °C — just 83 °F — increased the risk of conjunctivitis by roughly 16 percent compared to daily temperatures around 10.7 °C, or 51 °F. Longer pollen seasons and increased mold growth, both of which have been linked to climate change, are also contributing to an uptick in conjunctivitis caused by allergies, says ophthalmologist Malik Kahook at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. Beyond these direct impacts, climate-driven droughts cause food insecurity that can lead to deficiencies in essential nutrients, such as copper and vitamins B12, B1, and B9, that risk damaging the optic nerve. During droughts, people are often forced to use unsafe water, which also increases the risk of eye infections. There are ways to protect the eyes from climate-driven damage. First and foremost, outdoor workers should be given sufficient shade and frequent breaks to cool down, says Jesús Rodrigo Comino, a geographer at the University of Granada and a coauthor of the Spanish study. He also recommends wearing a hat with a visor that shields the eyes, as well as UV-filter sunglasses: Sunglasses offer nearly 38 percent more protection than not wearing them, Rodrigo Comino says. Contact lenses containing a hydrogel that allows more oxygen to reach the cornea can also help to stave off damage from UV, Rodrigo Comino says. These contact lenses are widely available and commonly prescribed by eye-care professionals worldwide. Eating foods rich in vitamins A, C, and E and tryptophan, as well as avoiding smoking and drinking alcohol, can also help, he adds. Reducing greenhouse gases and ozone-depleting chemicals, which increase UV exposure, are key to protecting eye health at a global level. But even under the best climate scenarios, intense climate-driven heat, droughts, and other eye irritants will continue to affect people like Kamble. Some programs are attempting to address the problem, including India's National Programme for Control of Blindness and Visual Impairment, which provides access to affordable cataract surgeries. That program covered the cost of Kamble's surgery. 'I never realized that the problem could get so severe by working in the fields,' she says.
