Feast Your Eyes on this Eyesight Salad Recipe
What if your next salad won't only look and taste great but also help sustain and even improve your vision?
Our selection of recipes to improve eyesight continues with a fresh and colorful salad loaded with antioxidants and other essential nutrients for healthy eyes.
Inspired by this original recipe from Tanja Lindner, this eyesight salad light enough for breakfast while also being the perfect companion dish for lunch or dinner. You can enjoy it at any time of day, whether on its own or in combination with other dishes.
What You'll Need
These ingredients are for two servings:
- 3 medium-sized carrots
- 2 kale leaves
- 2 turmeric roots
- Juice of ½ squeezed lemon
- 2-3 tbsp kimchi juice
- 1 tbsp pumpkin seeds
- 1 tbsp flaxseeds
- ½ cup chopped parsley for flavor
- ¼ cup avocado oil (or use olive oil)
- a handful of cashews or walnuts (optional)
- salt and pepper
You'll also need:
- Grater
- Salad bowl
- Kitchen gloves
How to Make the Eyesight Salad Step by Step
Got all the ingredients and tools? Great. Put on your kitchen gloves and follow the easy steps below.
- Peel and grate the carrots and put them into the salad bowl.
- Chop the parsley and mix it with the carrots.
- Wash and tear or cut the kale into thin strips and add it over the carrots and parsley.
- Peel and grate the fresh turmeric roots and add it in too.
- Add the flaxseeds and pumpkin seeds.
- Add the walnuts or cashews (optional).
- Drizzle the oil and then the kimchi on the vegetables in the bowl.
- Don’t forget to add the lemon juice.
- Add pepper and salt to taste.
- Mix the salad well.
- Feast your eyes on it and… enjoy!
PS: You can store any leftover salad in the fridge for up to two days.
What Makes This Eyesight Salad So Good for Your Eyes?
Can you really improve eyesight with food? It may seem a far-fetched statement, but there is at least some truth to this. Not taking in enough Vitamin A can cause night blindness. Eating carrots and other foods rich in this vitamin may help reverse the condition.
Lutein, Zeaxanthin, and Beta-Carotene
Carrots are good for your eyes. They are a valuable source of the phytochemicals lutein, zeaxanthin, and beta-carotene, which makes them orange and which the body converts to vitamin A. This vitamin in turn helps form rhodopsin, a light-sensitive sensory protein that enables night vision.
Lutein and zeaxanthin can be found in the center of the macula, the pigmented part of the retina, where they help regenerate cells. According to an article published in the Journal of Ophthalmology, taking in more lutein and zeaxanthin through food can reduce your risk of age-related macular degeneration. They can also prevent damage to the eyes caused by free radicals.
What’s more, carrots have vitamin B6, which plays an important role in sustaining healthy blood sugar levels and good blood flow. These are necessary for the fine blood vessels in the eyes to function normally.
Food good for the eyes includes leafy greens such as kale, which are also important sources of lutein and zeaxanthin.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Sources of omega-3 fatty acids may help reduce dry eye syndrome. Flaxseeds and walnuts are two foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids, though you may also want to consider fish oil for an optimal intake of these acids.
Vitamin B12
Kimchi juice, meanwhile, is a potent probiotic that promotes a healthy gut flora and, by doing so, the production of B12, which preserves the nervous system and the optic nerve. Damage to the optic nerve caused by Vitamin B12 deficiency may cause vision loss.
Other Nutrients
Other great foods for eye health include turmeric and black pepper, which help with nutrient absorption and the synthesis of antioxidants important for vision.
Cashews and pumpkin seeds, meanwhile, are good sources of zinc, which the body needs to produce the protective eye pigment melanin.
Vitamin C
According to the American Optometric Association, Vitamin C lowers the risk of cataracts and may slow or prevent the loss of vision over time. So adding some lemon juice to your salad is a good idea.
The Wrap Up
Foods good for your eyes provide lutein, zeaxanthin, beta-carotene, and other key vitamins and nutrients. The recipe we shared with you is a delicious way to taste some of them.
Great food for your vision doesn’t have to be expensive or hard to get. The best food for the eyes is actually easy to add to your menu. You can find it at your local supermarket.
But don’t forget about the power of eyehealth supplements. These can help contribute to healthy eyesight even on those busy days when you may not have time to grate some carrots.
Our Blueberry Gummies and packed with antioxidants for eye health and other goodies. Sweetened with monk fruit extract, they are natural and sugar-free.
Discover now the Blueberry Gummies that help support your eye health.
