April marks Women’s Eye Health and Safety Month. While both men and women can have eye-health issues, women in particular, tend to have more of them and make up two-thirds of all people living with blindness or visual impairment from diseases such as age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, and cataracts.

The National Eye Institute says that this is because women “tend to live longer than men, are more likely to undergo cancer treatments which affect vision, and experience age-related hormonal changes [i.e., pregnancy and menopause] that can affect the eyes.”

Dr. Cheryl agrees. She says that dry eyes and ocular migraines are common complaints for the women she sees at All About Eyes.

There are steps women can take to protect their eyes. Not surprisingly, they all center on taking care of themselves by:

• • • Scheduling a comprehensive eye exam. This will help to identify any eye-related issues and address any concerns.
    • Eating eye-healthy foods. Foods rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants help you to see better and keep your eyes in tip-top shape.
    • Getting plenty of exercise and sleep. Speaking of tip-top shape, maintaining a healthy weight will help to combat obesity and diabetes.
    • Not smoking. Smoking increases age-related macular degeneration by 25%!
    • Wearing sunglasses. Shading your eyes isn’t just a fashionable thing, sun damage on eyelids alone is the cause 5-10% of all skin cancers.
    • Limiting digital-device usage. It’s important to take breaks to exercise your distance vision from time-to-time.

So, encourage your mom, sisters, cousins, daughters, and friends to take care of their eyes and their overall health with these steps!