During March's Save Your Vision Month, the American Optometric Association (AOA) wants you to know that caring for your eyes includes being careful to include certain nutrients in your diet.

Two decades of extensive research have provided a better understanding of how diet plays a critical role in maintaining healthy eyes.

Six nutrients: antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin, essential fatty acids, vitamins C and E and the mineral zinc have been identified as helpful in promoting vision health. Since the body doesn't make these nutrients naturally, it's important that they are incorporated into your diet daily and, in some cases, supplemented.

Eye Nutrients in Fruits and Vegetables

Many of the nutrients important for eye health are found in fruits and vegetables. Carrots supply beta-carotene, which is essential for night vision, and spinach as well as other dark, leafy greens contain large amounts of the antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin.

The AOA recommends the following nutrients/foods for eye health:

• Lutein and zeaxanthin: To help maintain eye health throughout life, eat one cup of colorful fruits and vegetables such as broccoli, spinach, kale, corn, green beans, peas, oranges and tangerines four times a week.
• Essential fatty acids: Studies suggest omega-3 fatty acids such as flax oil or fleshy fish like tuna, salmon, or herring, whole grain foods, lean meats and eggs may support eye health and comfort.
• Vitamin C: Fruits and vegetables, including oranges, grapefruit, strawberries, papaya, green peppers and tomatoes, also promote healthy vision.
• Vitamin E: Vegetable oils, such as safflower or corn oil, almonds, pecans, sweet potatoes, and sunflower seeds are powerful antioxidants that can help protect the eyes for free-radical damage.
• Zinc: A deficiency of zinc can result in poor night vision and other vision problems therefore, consuming red meat, poultry, liver, shellfish, milk, baked beans, and whole grains on a daily basis is important.

The underlying message is this:  Nutrition is a component of health for the entire body, including your eyes. Even small dietary changes can make a big impact with vision.

Source:

American Optometric Association

Health guru, Dr. Mehmet Oz says it’s possible to get all the nutrients your body needs by eating a balanced diet—if you’re careful. But in his experience he often finds that many of us may not be getting enough of these five important nutrients.

Vitamin B 12

Vitamin B12 plays many essential roles in our bodies that help us feel good, look good and think clearly:

• B12 is necessary for the manufacture of red blood cells.
• It is needed for DNA to replicate normally--a process that leads to the creation healthy new cells.
• B12 supports brain and nerve health and function.
• A B12 deficiency can cause anemia, fatigue, dizziness and irritability.

To make sure you’re getting enough B12 in your diet, eat foods that contain high amounts of B12 including: sardines, salmon, and beef.

Dietary Fiber

It can be difficult to get the recommended 25-35 grams of fiber daily. But doing so can yield many health benefits:

• Fiber helps you feel full longer and therefore may support weight management
• It supports cardiovascular health
• Fiber promotes blood sugar balance
• Dietary fiber promotes regularity and detoxification

Good sources of dietary fiber include: whole grain bread or pasta, oatmeal, apples, or beans.

Calcium

Most Americans--young and old--are not getting enough calcium. Calcium is not only important for healthy bones, it is vital for healthy blood vessels, muscle contractions and nerve signal transmission.

Good sources of calcium include milk and fortified orange juice. Both contain about 500 milligrams of calcium in an 8 oz glass. Dr. Oz recommends that adults get at least 1,000 – 1,300 mg of calcium a day plus 600 milligrams of magnesium per day to help your body absorb calcium.

Vitamin D

Like calcium, vitamin D is necessary for bone health, but it also supports your immune system and inflammatory balance.

Milk and some dairy products are fortified with vitamin D. Other sources include fatty fish like salmon and mackerel, as well as beef and egg yolks. Your body can also create vitamin D from exposure to sunlight.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

Next on Dr. Oz’ list of nutrients we may be missing are omega-3 fatty acids found in fatty fish. Omega-3 fatty acids are now the most popular dietary supplement on the market and among the top doctor recommended supplements for overall good health. Omega-3 fatty acids:

• Promote cardiovascular health
• Support inflammatory balance
• Promote joint flexibility and comfort
• DHA in fish oil promotes brain health, memory and cognitive function

Good sources of omega-3s are cod, salmon, scallops and shrimp. If you don’t care for the taste of fish, other omega-3 sources include walnuts, flax seeds and soybeans.

Plan B

Of these five nutrients, Dr. Oz says some--particularly fiber and omega-3s--are more difficult than others to obtain from your diet. That’s where you may need to go to your “back-up plan” and take dietary supplements to fill-in nutritional gaps. Just be sure you choose a supplement brand that is professionally formulated and held to the highest standards for purity, potency and authenticity through extensive quality testing.

All supplements are not the same. Learn why quality differs among supplement brands.

Sources:

Yahoo Health

No, we haven’t been invaded by aliens with brain shriveling ray guns. Brain shrinkage is part of normal aging. But why are some brains shrinking at a faster rate than others? A new study may have cornered the culprit.

UCLA researchers found that people with low serum levels of omega-3 fatty acids had slightly smaller brains and scored lower on memory and cognitive tests than people with higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids.

The researchers estimated that the differences in brain size were equivalent to roughly two years of brain aging.

We have known for some time that Omega-3 fatty acids, particularly DHA is essential for brain and eye development in the womb and early childhood, but more studies like this one are finding that Omega-3 fatty acid levels may also affect brain and nerve function throughout life.

For this three month study, the researchers measured the level of omega-3 fatty acids in red blood cells of over 1,575 people with an average age of 67 who did not have any form of dementia or other condition associated with memory loss. A magnetic resonance imaging scan of the brain was used to measure brain volume.

Study Findings

• Study participants who ranked in the bottom 25% based on levels of omega-3 fatty acid in their blood had lower brain volume compared with those with higher levels.
• Those with low omega-3 blood levels did not perform as well on neuropsychological tests of memory, abstract reasoning and function.

Optimal Omega-3 Levels

This study begs the question, how much Omega-3 fatty acids do you need in your diet to maintain your health?

The researchers were not able to determine how much fish or other omega-3-rich foods that study subjects consumed to reach a certain omega-3 level. However, the most recent dietary guidelines recommend at least two servings a week of seafood high in omega-3 fatty acids.

Some doctors and diet experts recommend that patients consume fish three times a week or take fish-oil supplements so they get enough omega-3 fatty acids to obtain multiple health benefits, including support for:

• Cardiovascular Health
• Inflammatory Balance
• Immune Support
• Cell Membrane Function – virtually every single cell in your body needs essential fatty acids like those found in fish to function properly.

If you’re not fond of fish, or are concerned about the potential for mercury or PCBs in fish, then supplementing with a high quality fish oil is a good alternative.

The American Heart Association’s recommended intakes for fish oil range from a baseline of .5 to 1 gram up to 2-4 grams daily of EPA and DHA for optimal benefits.

Sources:

Science Daily

Linus Pauling Institute

University of Maryland Medical Center

American Heart Association

Researchers believe that a particular combination of vitamins and nutrients works together synergistically to promote brain health. They found that seniors with high serum levels of omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins B, C, D, and E scored higher on thinking tests and also tended to have larger brain volume.

Their findings were based on measuring levels of more than 30 nutrients in the blood of 104 elderly people with an average age of 87. The participants were all healthy nonsmokers with few chronic illnesses and free of memory and thinking problems.

Those with high levels of vitamins B, C, D and E performed better on tests of executive function, attention, visuospatial skills, and global cognitive function. They also had larger brains.

Higher amounts of omega-3 fatty acids were associated with better executive function and fewer changes to the white matter of the brain. Omega-3s were not linked to any other measures of mental abilities.

"Executive function" is a term used to describe higher level thinking involving planning, attention and problem solving.

By contrast, study participants with high levels of trans fats (bad fats) performed worse on tests of thinking abilities and had smaller brains.

The researchers noted that some amount of brain atrophy or shrinkage is normal with aging. Changes in the white matter can be indicative of damage to the small blood vessels of the brain.

Better Brain Tip:

While the study found an association between certain nutrients and brain characteristics rather than showing cause-and-effect, it still makes good sense to limit trans fats, and to eat lots of fruits, vegetables and fatty fish.

For more tips on natural ways to boost your brain power, read more about brain and memory health here.

Sources:

Health Finder