Expert: Geoff - 9/7/2003

Question
Hi. I'm a teen with a very high degree of myopia (around .700 I think, but I do not know the amount in 20/20 terms). My vision has progressed steadily downwards each year due to factors like computers and T.V., but I want to have better vision. I've spent less time at the computer/TV, and I do not consume many sugary foods, but are there other ways to protect and make my sight better? I've also heard of the Bate's Method, but the only exercise I know how to do is palming. I do that frequently, and I want to know more about Bates, and other things I could do. Thank you for your help.  

Answer
Hello,
Yes,It's a good idea to avoid sugary foods. Also, if you wear glasses, avoid using them as much as possible(reasonable), except when it's dangerous, such as when you're driving. Wearing glasses is the one thing that really weakens your eyes over time. There are too many eye-exercises to go into on this e-mail, but here are a few:-
1:- Sunning:-  Close your eyes and pass eyes back and forth across the sun several times.
2:- Near and far shifting. Look in 1 direction(eg:- a road) and look at a near object in that direction and then at a far object at the same angle. The best example is to look at a car approaching you and follow it with your eyes until it vanishes into the distance.
3:- Swinging. Stand up loosely, swing body and head LOOSELY
(!) side to side and don't strain your eyes to see anything, just keep them open.
4:- When palming try to visualise the colour black -it helps.
There's a whole lot more, but if you buy Aldous Huxley's book "The Art of Seeing"(c.$12 on amazon.com(?) it will give you not only the theory but the basic eye-exercises with instructions.(Huxley also wrote Chrome Yellow and Brave New World, incidentally). Also look at the webiste "The Bates Method for further vision education" for details on where to find your nearest Bates Method teacher. I myself bought a Bates Method cassette course, as it's cheaper than getting hold of a teacher. You should find Bates Method products listed on the website as well.
One of the main problems with the Bates Method is that you cannot improve your eyesight unless your stress levels are low enough. I had huge problems with eyestrain initially until I discovered the Primal Diet on the Internet. This diet was brilliant and not only removed my eye-strain but resolved some other health problems as well(but only when I avoided the raw dairy component of the diet). I realise it is EXTREMELY "way-out" in its ideas and is certainly not for everyone - I only mention it because it worked in speeding up the recovery of my eyesight. If you are interested, look at the website www.rawpaleodiet.org under "Dos and Donts" and "My Daily Diet" for an idea of what the diet entails. If you want to know more, read "The recipe for living without disease" by Aajonus Vonderplanitz-
Hope This Helps!
geoff Purcell