My Online Health Articles and Healthy Recipes

Our eyesight is one of our most precious commodities. The vitamins in this Coleslaw Recipe and our Eye-Happy Salad might be just what you need to protect your vision and avoid eye problems.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know junk food isn’t good for you. But did you know it may also cause eye problems? It’s recently been shown that fatty snack foods may lead to macular degeneration, which causes vision impairment for many seniors.

To protect your eyes, you need to find healthy alternatives to the foods you love that don’t love you back. Thankfully, many healthy foods contain vitamins that actually promote eye health. Foods rich in beta-carotene (vitamin A) have been proven to positively affect both night vision and day-to-day eyesight and helps prevent cataract and macular degeneration. Foods that contain thiamine (vitamin B1) and vitamin E prevent lens deterioration, and foods rich in vitamin C provide antioxidants help prevent glaucoma.

Other nutrients also support healthy vision. There may be evidence that lutein could reduce eye problems, according to the National Eye Institute. Their researchers have even gone out on a limb and said that zinc, found in shellfish, eggs, legumes, herring, liver and milk, reduces the risk of advanced age-related macular degeneration and vision loss. The also believe that fish, such as salmon and sardines, contains omega-3 fatty acids that promote retina health.

It just takes a little extra effort to add more eye-healthy foods to your daily routine. The following healthy recipes will help you do just that:

Coleslaw with Visionary Power
Makes 8 servings

• 2 6-oz. containers of low-fat pineapple yogurt
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 2 T. low-fat mayonnaise
• 1 head of cabbage, thinly sliced
• 4 carrots, shredded
• 1 small sweet bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 small onion, finely chopped

1. Whisk yogurt, mayonnaise and salt together in a large bowl.

2. Chop the cabbage, sweet bell pepper and onion; scrub and then shred the carrots. Don’t peel them so you preserve the vitamins and minerals near the surface. Add these ingerdients to the yogurt mixture bowl and mix well.

Eye-Happy Salad
Makes 8 servings

• 2 heads romaine lettuce
• 2 C. carrots, shredded
• 2 C. sweet bell peppers, diced
• 2 C. seedless cucumber, diced
• 2 C. tomatoes, diced
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced
• 2 ripe avocados
• 1-1/2 T. lime juice
• Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Cut the tough ribs from the Romaine, chop the remaining leaves into small pieces and place them in a large bowl.

2. Wash and chop the tomatoes, bell pepper, cucumber and scallions, and then scrub and shred the carrots. Place them in the salad bowl.

3. Cut the avocados into 1/4- to 1/2-inch cubes. Place the cubes into a separate bowl and cover with a thin coating of lime juice to prevent discoloration. Toss well until coated and add the avocados to the salad bowl.

4. Add a low-fat dressing and toss the salad.

We hope you enjoy making these healthy recipes that are good for your vision.

You might also be interested in these other recipes:

• Blueberry Recipes with Antioxidant Power
• Broccoli Recipes
• Asparagus Recipes
• Garlic Recipes with Antiviral Power
• Pasta Recipes to Boost Your Immune System
• Recipes to Control Blood Sugar
• Recipes to Keep Anemia at Bay

Please see the rest of our site for more health articles.

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