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There is one simple thing everyone can do for better eye health.
The answer is exercising. Even if it’s just a few minutes a day, going for a brisk walk, a bike ride, or playing a team sport can sharpen vision and lower the risks of developing a wide range of vision conditions.
Sharing this simple eye health tip for your customers is important. It’s a great way to remind them to be more proactive about their eye health and think of ways to adopt a healthier lifestyle.
Do you need arguments to inspire your customers to be more active? Read on to learn about the many benefits of an active lifestyle for eye health.
Improved Circulation
It’s no secret that exercise improves blood flow. Going for a jog or even something as simple as climbing a flight of stairs causes blood vessels to relax and blood flow increases as a result.
Why is increased blood flow good? Firstly, it brings essential nutrients and vitamins to the eyes and other important organs. Vitamin A supports a clear cornea, Vitamin E can prevent cataracts and Vitamin C can help delay age-related macular degeneration.
Secondly, the slight dilation that happens in arteries and blood vessels during exercising is good for the blood circulatory system, including the arteries leading to the eyes and the myriad tiny blood vessels found in the eyes.
In fact, healthy eye blood vessels can reduce the risks of wet macular degeneration, a condition where abnormal blood vessels grow in the eye and damage the macula.
Enhanced Eye Movements and Coordination
With remote workers and students reporting frequent eye strain linked to increased screen time, recommending a sport that requires hand-eye coordination is solid advice.
You can recommend pickleball, one of the fastest-growing sports in the United States. You could also encourage your customers to try their hand at basketball or even archery.
These sports require the eye to track an object, which is an excellent way to engage the muscles supporting the eye. Consequently, stronger eye muscles can ward off eye strain and other eye health issues.
To prevent eye injuries, make sure to recommend appropriate protective eyewear based on the activity customers pick!
Spending Time Outdoors
More than a third of Americans spend over an hour outdoors daily. It’s an encouraging number, but many of your customers probably spend less time outside.
Adopting an active lifestyle filled with activities like long walks, bike rides and hikes has several advantages:
- Let’s be honest. How much time to you spend in front of screens outside of work? Exploring a new hobby that gets you moving is a great way to get away from screens and give your eyes a rest.
- Research suggests natural light can reduce the risks of developing childhood myopia. It also has benefits for adult eyes.
- The human body needs sunshine to synthesize Vitamin D, which can protect the eyes from macular degeneration.
While spending time outdoors is great for one’s health and mood, it’s also important to use protective eyewear. A simple way to protect your customers from the dangers of UV ray exposure is to recommend wearing sunglasses.
A Healthy Lacrimal System
The lacrimal system is responsible for producing and draining tears from the eye. The lacrimal gland located just above the eye produces fluid that lubricates the eye. Then, the tear duct drains the excess fluid into the nasal cavity.
A healthy lacrimal system is crucial for keeping eyes hydrated and protected. The fluid produced by the lacrimal gland creates a protective barrier known as the tear film. It keeps irritants and small debris out of the eyes and creates a smooth surface for optimal vision. It also delivers important nutrients to the cornea.
Without a healthy tear film, a painful condition known as dry eyes can appear. For customers who wear contacts, maintaining a healthy tear film is crucial since contacts can become difficult to wear without this protective layer.
What’s the best way to develop a healthy tear film? The answer, again, is exercise.
Being active increases blood flow to the entire lacrimal system and ensures that the lacrimal gland and tear duct function as intended.
Adopting a Healthier Lifestyle
Experts recommend 150 minutes of moderate exercise a week or up to 75 minutes of vigorous activity. Less than two hours a week is all it takes!
On top of improving eye health, being more active has several other benefits, including:
- Better mood and reduced stress and anxiety.
- Maintaining a healthy weight.
- Lowering the risks of developing health conditions such as heart disease or diabetes.
- Improving brain health.
- Better sleep quality.
- Living a happier and richer life.
Talking about the benefits of exercising with your customers supports the idea that good health is a holistic concept.
Exercising once or twice a week can be a first step toward adopting a healthier lifestyle, with good habits such as an improved diet, better sleep hygiene, or being more proactive about health-related checkups. It’s also a great starting point for a conversation you can have with your customers about their habits, overall health, and what they wish they could do to improve their lifestyle. You’ll probably learn interesting things about your audience that you can later use to refine your broker digital marketing strategy.
Better Eye Health With Vision Care Direct
Better eye health doesn’t have to be complicated. Taking a daily walk, challenging your friends to a game of pickleball, and trying something new once in a while can go a long way in improving eye health.
As a broker, the tips discussed above are great advice to share with your customers. While you’re on the topic of eye health, you should also bring up regular eye exams.
A yearly eye exam is crucial for detecting a wide range of eye health conditions early. With a VCD plan, eye exams and other important optometry services are affordable and easy to access. If you don’t have VCD plans in your portfolio yet, learn more about joining our family as a broker.
Summary: Exercising regularly is key to eye health. From improved circulation to stronger eye muscles, explore the many reasons to recommend regular exercise to your vision health customers.
