Improve the resilience of your eyes with these helpful hacks.
Looking after your eyes gets more important as the years go by, but it’s easy to neglect them when you don’t notice big changes.
Occasional dry eyes, itchy eyelids or forehead ache might not seem a big deal, but irritants like these are sometimes symptoms of eye diseases or conditions.
Exercise your eyes
Exercises can reduce double vision and help prevent lazy eye. Start with the flexing technique — face forward with eyes straight ahead; look up without moving your head, bring your eyes back to the middle and then look down. Repeat ten times.
The figure of eight is easy, too — stare at a blank wall and trace a large sideways figure of eight with your eyes. Continue without moving your head for one minute, then reverse.
Eye teasers
Useful apps like Eye Check by Boots test your colour perception, astigmatism and visual acuity. Vision Test by 3-Sided Cube uses mini challenges to improve the focus in your eyes. These must not be used as diagnostic tools or replacements for medical check-ups.
The 20-20-20 rule
Californian optometrist Jeffrey Anshel designed the 20-20-20 rule to relieve eye strain at work. Watch something 20 feet away from you for 20 seconds and repeat every 20 minutes. This will rest your eyes from screens and is the perfect excuse for a little workplace daydream.
Speedy snacks to try
1. 3-minute hummus
Chickpeas provide zinc, lemons give vitamin C and the antioxidants in fresh garlic help the eye lens. Ideal with a handful of carrot sticks for your daily dose of vitamin A.
- Put 850g of canned chickpeas in an electric mixer with 1/3 of the can of water and 100g tahini.
- Add 55g olive oil, the juice of 2 lemons, 2 garlic cloves, 1tsp of cumin and ½tsp salt.
- Blend until smooth and creamy
2. Blueberry and soya coconut granola 
Antioxidants in blueberries help the cornea of the eyes, calcium in soya yogurt helps stave off age-related degeneration and honey has essential anti-inflammatory properties.
- Layer 32g Alpro soya coconut yogurt under 15 blueberries.
- Spoon on 32g of Lizi’s Low Sugar Granola and trickle on 1tsp all- natural honey for extra sweetness.
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