Your eyesight is very precious- just ask anyone who has lost their sight. You may have heard growing up that carrots improve eyesight, but there is more to the story than carrots alone. Dark green leafy vegetables contain vitamins and other nutrients important to good eyesight. Dark green leafy vegetables contain lutein and zeaxanthin, antioxidants that can help prevent macular degeneration and cataracts. In addition to lutein and zeaxanthin, dark leafy greens also contain large amounts of vitamin A, which helps with night vision, and vitamin B, which also helps with eyesight.
For Healthy Eyesight Eat Leafy Greens
Leafy green vegetables include:
- Collard greens
- Romaine lettuce
- Swiss chard
- Turnip greens
- Mustard greens
As a general rule of thumb, the darker green the vegetable, the better it is for you (richer in vitamins and minerals).
Why It Works
Vitamin A is needed by the retina of the eye in the form of retinal, which is necessary for color vision. The B vitamins are actually a group of 8 vitamins, each of which is unique. Vitamin B12 is the B vitamin associated with good eyesight. Lutein is concentrated in the macula, a small portion of the retina which is responsible for normal central vision. It is recommended that you eat 1 cup of leafy green vegetables each day to ensure good vision, and 3 to 5 servings of vegetables daily.
It is unlikely that you will “overdose” on leafy green vegetables; there are no real precautions associated with eating dark green leafy vegetables.