Health Tips for Better Vision

A recent study published in JAMA Ophthalmology Jan. 14, 2016, has concluded that eating more leafy green vegetables can prevent a major cause of blindness known as glaucoma. Two studies performed by Harvard scientists (each longer than 25 years) reviewed the diets of more than 100,000 men and women. Those who ate the most leafy greens had a 20-30 % lower risk of developing glaucoma compared to people who ate less. How did they come to that conclusion?  Glaucoma is due to increased pressure from fluid in the eye around the optic nerve. Decreased blood flow to the optic nerve can also cause it. Dr. Jae Hee Kang,  a Harvard Medical School assistant professor and lead author thinks leafy greens are high in nitrates, which after digestion become nitric oxide. According to Dr. Jae Hee Kang, “Nitric oxide is important for maintaining optimal blood flow, and possibly for