Book Recommendation: Eat Right for Your Sight

At Ellen Byron and Associates, our philosophy is to treat food as medicine and nourish your body by eating whole foods. Recently, we read a great book promoting recipes for eye health, specifically reducing the risk of Macular Degeneration. This disease affects the retina of the eye and results in impairment of both distance and close vision. Often age-related, Macular Degeneration is classified into two types: dry and wet. Dry macular degeneration is the more common type and is most associated with aging, causing vision loss due to macular thinning. Wet macular degeneration is caused by abnormal blood vessel formation under the retina. These vessels leak fluid and blood and often quickly bring the onset of vision loss.

The book promotes vibrant and colorful recipes, filled with vitamins and antioxidants. Vitamin A has a vital role in maintaining eye health, specifically with beta-carotene. This gives foods their bright color and is found in plant foods such as dark leafy greens, carrots, papayas, and tomatoes. It is also found in animal products such as liver, egg yolks, fish, and dairy. With that being said, the book promotes nourishing recipes featuring fish, vegetables, eggs, nuts, and legumes, highly similar to the Mediterranean diet. Other important nutrients to eye health include Vitamin C, D, and E, Omega-3, Zinc, and Lycopene. Consumption of anti-oxidants promotes the reversing of oxidative stress that leads to aging.

Whether you're in the mood for a snack, meal, or dessert, you can find many healthy options in this book! One great feature to note about the cookbook is that it lists the Nutritional Profile for eye health in each recipe, noting not just the macronutrients but Vitamins A, C, D, E, beta carotene, and essential amino acids. The book provides recipes for small bites and snacks, soups, salads, main courses, side dishes, desserts, and drinks. One recipe we want to recommend is the Salmon with Peppered Balsamic Strawberries, just delicious!

Be sure to take advantage of the recipes in this book and Eat Right for Your Sight!

Written By: Elizabeth Hoffman, Ellen Byron & Associates

References:

Boyd, Kierstan. “What Is Macular Degeneration?” American Academy of Ophthalmology, 10 Feb. 2022, https://www.aao.org/eye-health/diseases/amd-macular-degeneration.

Thompson, Jennifer Trainer, and Johanna M. Seddon. Eat Right for Your Sight: Simple, Tasty Recipes That Help Reduce the Risk of Vision Loss from Macular Degeneration. The Experiment, 2015.