Chances are, you’ve probably heard the old myth that if you eat a lot of carrots you’ll have perfect eyesight. While eating carrots does have some benefit to your eyes, they can not magically cure your eyes (as much as we’d like them to).
The reasons carrots are considered good for your eyes is because of the Vitamin A they have. Vitamin A is responsible for helping to convert light into a signal that the brain is able to understand, which allows you to see better when there is less light. Vitamin A also responsible for keeping your cornea healthy and intact.
Therefore, those two benefits combined translated into the myth that carrots help you have night vision and can give you perfect vision if you eat enough.
The reality?
This is just not possible. Carrots can help you get Vitamin A that has positive effects on your eyes, but they do not possess superpowers.
From a scientific standpoint, most people would not experience direct and noticeable results from eating carrots. Binge eating copious amounts of carrots would practically accomplish nothing.
Your body naturally would regulate out the excess amount of Vitamin A you’d be receiving from eating carrots because eating too many can become toxic. Plus, eating too many carrots could turn your skin yellow. Who wants that? All in all, incorporating carrots in your diet and balancing it among other vitamin-rich foods does help your overall health, including your eyes, but it would not change your eyes.
Carrots are not even the best option if you are looking for something to help your eyes. Generally, leafy and green veggies are the best way to go. For example, spinach or kale. Leafy vegetables have lutein and zeaxanthin, which are also nutrients that support your eye health.
They can help prevent macular degeneration and help protect the retina. Being aware of what can support your eye health is a healthy habit to have, but make sure to keep in mind that your diet alone is not the only part of what you need to do to support your eye health.
As much as we would all like to have an easy way to keep our eyes perfect, it is just not reality. The real key to improving and keeping our eyes healthy is a combination of factors, with getting eye exams being one of the most important ones.
Getting your eyes checks means you can get eyewear that will help you see better.