4 Natural Ways to Prevent Cataracts

4 Natural Ways to Prevent Cataracts

By age 75, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology, half of all Americans will develop cataracts. That means that by the time you turn 75 years of age you will have a 50/50 chance of needing surgery to remove your cataracts and enable you to see clearly again. If you cannot get the surgery you will eventually lose your sight. Cataracts develop on the lens of the eye slowly covering it up until your eyesight goes from a little cloudy, a little blurry, a little hazy, a little colorless to full out blindness. 

The only way to correct this is by removing the cloudy lens and replacing it with an artificial lens called an intraocular or IOL lens. However, before you even get to this point there are several steps you can with these 4 natural ways to prevent cataracts.

The Right Spice

Turmeric is a yellow-orange spice linked to the ginger family native to Southeast Asia. Grown commercially in India, this spice is used in scores of recipes giving each a savory kick associated with the many Indian foods. It is also cultivated to extract curcumin, the compound that gives turmeric its yellow-orange color as it has been linked to addressing various ailments including: 

  • Arthritis 
  • Digestive disorders
  • Respiratory infections
  • Allergies
  • Liver disease
  • Depression

Curcumin may also help prevent cataracts.

Published in Studies in Natural Products Chemistry vol 63, 2019 Chapter 11 – Curcumin and molecular targets in eye diseases, it was stated that,

“Curcumin treatment studies show significant inhibition of neuronal and vascular damage during ischemic or oxidative stress, allergic conjunctivitis and maculopathy. Thus, from these studies, it is obvious that curcumin is a pleiotropic “drug” and has great versatility as far as its pharmacological activities are concerned. This makes curcumin a potential drug for cytoprotective as well as therapeutic purposes against diseases of the eye.”

Check with your physician or naturopathic doctor to see if curcumin may be a good choice for you. Daily dosage is recommended to buildup an accumulative reserve for optimal benefits. 

Bilberry Blast

Native to Europe, Asia, Northern United States and Canada, bilberry is similar to the sweet blueberry fruit but the taste is completely different as it is more acidic. Therefore it is used for cooking as well as medicinally. Bilberry has been found to address a variety of health conditions including:

  • Diarrhea
  • inflammation of the mouth
  • Urinary problems
  • Diabetes 
  • Traditionally to prevent scurvy, due to its high vitamin C content. 
  • Possible improvement of night vision

Bilberry has also been linked to protecting the eye lens from oxidative stress and deflecting damage caused by UV radiation. A study posted by the National Library of Medicine, National Center for Biotechnology Information and published in the Malaysian Journal of Medicine found that,

“Cataract is a multi-factorial disease associated with diabetes, smoking, ultraviolet radiation, alcohol, ionizing radiation, steroids, and hypertension. There is strong experimental and epidemiological evidence that ultraviolet [UV] radiation causes cataracts…In conclusion,…The potent free radical scavenger and antioxidant, bilberry, may protect rats’ lens tissues from oxidative damage, minimize DNA strand breaks, and prevent the disruption of the oxidant/antioxidant balance in the lens tissue, thus preventing organ dysfunction.”  

Give bilberry supplementation a try by incorporating a dose into your daily regiment. Over time this fruit loaded with anthocyanosides, plant pigments that have excellent antioxidant properties, has been shown to accumulate in the system and create a good preventative for cataract development. 

Green Tea

Green tea (Camellia sinensis) has long been a healing beverage throughout ancient history. Not only does it have “clean caffeine” which means it affects the brain in a gentler way than coffee, but it is also loaded with antioxidant properties.

A study titled ‘Tea and Risk of Age-Related Cataracts’ published in the Journal of Epidemiology concluded that,

“In light of the findings of this study, we recommend that reasonable methods of tea consumption, such as ingesting green tea at moderate concentration at over 500 mL [about 2 cups] per day on average, should be encouraged to prevent or retard the progression of age-related cataracts. Moreover, besides age-related cataracts, tea might play a protective role against other types of cataracts. For instance, an earlier study reported that diabetic cataracts could be inhibited by both green and black tea through a hypoglycemic effect, which in turn inhibits the biochemical indicators of pathology” 

Experiment with the wide variety of green teas available and make this healing beverage a part of your dietary intake. Green tea is excellent hot or cold and can even be added to smoothies or other beverage recipes.

Garlic

The pungent, bulbous root of allium sativum aka garlic is considered one of the most medicinal foods available to humans. Consumption of this tasty herb has been linked to treating:

  • High blood pressure
  • Preventing Alzheimer’s disease and dementia
  • Detoxifying the body from heavy metals
  • Improving bone health
  • Preventing the common cold
  • Treating symptoms of the flu

Various studies also suggest using garlic on a regular basis to prevent the development of cataracts. One study published in the Journal of Ocular Biology, Diseases, and Informatics reported that,

“Garlic administration in a dose-dependent manner attenuated the glycemia-mediated oxidative stress as all the parameters have been found normalized more or less to that of control rats and thus delaying the progression of the lens opacity. We conclude that garlic extract has hypoglycemic and anti oxidant properties that can delay the progression of cataract as revealed in this study.”

Recipes for garlic are abundant as this robust herb can be used in just about any dish. One potent way to ingest garlic is by baking it into a buttery spread. Simply peel off the outer crepe-like skin and wrap in aluminum foil then bake at about 200-300 degrees for 15-30 minutes. Let cool then open the foil and use a spoon to scoop and spread onto bread. It is a savory treat not to be missed while doing your body and your eyes some much needed good. 

Try one or more of these 4 natural ways to prevent cataracts so you can surpass any future, cloudy vision and glide clearly into your golden years. 

Sources:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9780128179017000113

https://www.aao.org/newsroom/eye-health-statistics

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3952348/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5083322/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20072634/