Are there any home remedies to improve eyesight?

Here are some essential eye exercises and Ayurvedic tips to help keep your eyes healthy.

Hi, I am a 32-year-old male. When I was a child (2-3 years old), I was mistakenly given a penicillin injection for fever. My body showed an immediate reaction towards it and my right eye got affected. Since then, the power of my right eye went on increasing till (-2.50). My parents did not know this until I was 16 years old. Since I did not use glasses till the time of diagnosis, my left eye number also increased to -0.75. Is there any home/natural remedy to reduce my eye power?

Yes, there are ways to help improve your eyesight. Poor vision is caused due to a number of factors, and in your case one of the major factors is fatigue and eye strain. To help your eyes recover, here are some eye exercises and Ayurvedic tips that help will keep the damage to your eyes in check.

Exercises for the eyes

Stimulate your eye muscles:

This exercise is simple, but must be done every morning. On waking up, wash your face with water (preferably cool or a little cold water). Then fill your mouth with water, close your eyes and splash cold water onto your eyes.

This exercise helps stimulate the muscles of the eyes, due to the pressure exerted by the water filled in your mouth. The splash of cold water on your face helps enliven the nerve endings and rejuvenates the skin.

Wash your eyes

Ayurvedic practitioners say that one must avoid splashing water directly into the eyes; instead you can use a tridoshic eyewash. To make this eyewash, soak triphla churna in water over night. In the morning strain the liquid and wash your eyes with it twice a day. This eyewash helps relax and relieve stress in the eyes.

Massage over worked eyes:

This is a great exercise for people who work for long hours in front of computers. Hold your eyebrows between your thumb and index finger, in such a way that the thumb is above the eyebrow and index finger below. Now, gently press and straighten your eyebrows, exerting gentle pressure on all the points. Then, take your thumb and gently roll it around your eye ball, i.e. along your eye socket. Do this exercise every three to four hours to improve the circulation around your eyes. This exercise improves circulation around the eyes helping them recover from the fatigue of constantly looking at a computer screen. Read more about computer vision syndrome.

Exercise the muscles around your eyes

This exercise is done to stimulate the muscles around your eyeballs (that are present within the eye socket). Rotate your eyeballs, first to the right and left, then upwards and downwards. Do this in the clockwise and anti-clockwise direction for about three to four repetitions.

Give your eyes some much needed rest

This technique has been practised in Ayurveda for a number of years. Later picked up by optometrist Dr Bates, it was named palming. To do this, rub the palms of both your hands for 30 seconds till you feel warm between the two palms then place them gently over the eyes. Hold this position for about one minute or till the heat decreases. Slowly open your eyes. Beware not to look directly at bright light after this; allow your eyes to gradually acclimatize to the change in the environment.

Bat those eyelids

Blinking is the eyes natural way to renew the moisture in the eyes and give it some much needed relief. To help your eyes relax, make it a habit to blink after every five to six seconds during the exercise.

Get some shut eye

Sound sleep is very essential. It not only allows your body to heal and rest, it also gives your eyes much needed relief from bright lights and strain. Sleeping also is a time your body repairs itself, so getting enough time to nap helps the renewal process in the body, especially in the eyes. Experts say that meditating for about ten minutes before you go to bed is the best way to ensure sound sleep. Read more about yoga to beat insomnia

Diet for healthy, stress-free eyes

Apart from all the exercises you perform your diet is an essential for your eyes. Here are some diet tips you should follow for healthy eyes:

• Almonds, raisins and figs are elixirs for the eyes. To help them cope with the demands of your day-to-day activities with this home remedy. Soak six to ten almonds, fifteen raisins and two anjeers overnight in some water. Eat them on an empty stomach in the morning. The high amount of fiber and vitamins in these fruits helps speed up the digestive processes and helps the body get rid of toxins, thereby helping in resolving eye-related problems.
• Another good home remedy for eye-related disorders is to have one cup of carrot and amla juice, on an empty stomach in the morning. Carrot and amla have a lot of vitamin A and are store houses of antioxidants that help beat the ill effects of oxidative stress in the body.
• The benefits of copper as a micronutrient are innumerable, but one of its greatest benefits is that it is a very potent antibacterial agent. Ayurvedic practitioners recommend drinking one liter of water, stored overnight in a copper vessel, lends innumerable healing properties to the eyes and other vital organs.
• Include foods rich in vitamin A into your daily diet. Foods like carrots, green leafy vegetables, amla, oranges, anjeer or fig and almonds are packed with this essential vitamin.
• Lastly, avoid non-vegetarian, spicy and preservative-laden foods. They lead to the buildup of toxins, that the body finds extremely difficult to flush out. These toxins build up and lead to various diseases including vision-related problems.

You may also like to read:

• Home remedies for constipation
• Herbal remedies for hypertension
• Home remedies to keep your heart healthy
• Top natural remedies for your liver
• Home remedies for acidity that actually work
• Home remedies for mouth ulcers
• Home remedies to soothe burns
• Natural remedies to beat stress
• Natural remedies for itchy skin

For more natural remedies, check out our natural remedies section. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest updates! For daily free health tips, sign up for our newsletter. And to join discussions on health topics of your choice, visit our forum.