How to Reduce Eyestrain and Promote Optimal Vision

By Dr. Ben Kim on November 19, 2007

• Natural Health Solutions

This article outlines simple eye exercises and acupressure points that you can use to reduce eyestrain and support optimal vision.

To reduce eyestrain and experience optimal vision, two major requirements are as follows:

1. The six muscles that move each of your eyes need to be strong and relaxed.
2. You must have strong and steady blood flow to your eyes and to the muscles that control your eyes.

The six muscles that control all of your eye movements are as follows:

1. Lateral rectus - Primarily moves the eye outward, away from your nose.
2. Medial rectus - Primarily moves the eye inward, toward your nose.
3. Superior rectus - Primarily moves the eye upward.
4. Inferior rectus - Primarily moves the eye downward.
5. Superior oblique - Primarily rotates the top of the eye toward your nose.
6. Inferior oblique - Primarily rotates the top of the eye away from your nose.

Perhaps the single greatest reason why people in today's society suffer from chronic eyestrain and deteriorating vision is the amount of time that is spent staring at computer monitors and television screens.

Your eyes are designed to move regularly, and regular movement of your eyes is what promotes optimal blood flow and nerve function to your eyes and the six muscles that control your eye movements.

What follows are several simple eye exercises that you can do on a regular basis to keep your eyes and vision as healthy as possible:

1. Look as far to your right as possible for 3-5 seconds, then as far to your left as possible for 3-5 seconds. Rest for a few seconds, then repeat this sequence several times.

2. Look as far up as possible for 3-5 seconds, then look as far down as possible for 3-5 seconds. Rest for a few seconds, then repeat this sequence several times.

3. Slowly roll your eyes in a circle, first clockwise, then counter-clockwise. Rest for a few seconds, then repeat this sequence several times. Be sure to roll slowly - it should take at least 3 seconds for you to roll your eyes in a full circle.

4. Hold a pen in front of you, about an arm's length away. Focus your vision on the tip of your pen for 3-5 seconds, then shift the focus of your vision to an object that is farther away for 3-5 seconds. The greater the distance between your pen and the distant object, the better. If you are indoors, look out a window to find a distant object to focus your vision on. Repeat this sequence of going back and forth between your pen and a distant object several times.

   Just for interest's sake, this exercise is routinely used by professional baseball players to optimize visual acuity, which is essential for the hand-eye coordination that is needed to play pro ball.

Please note that all of these exercises should be done with your eyes, not your head and neck. In other words, keep your head and neck still while you take your eyes through the movements described above.

If you would like more comprehensive guidance on how to improve and protect your vision as you age, I highly recommend that you read:

Relearning to See: Improve Your Eyesight - Naturally!

This is an outstanding book that offers a comprehensive array of exercises and information that can help you support your vision. And if you wear eyeglasses or contacts, following the guidance provided in this book may actually help you do away with your prescription eye wear. I started following some of the recommendations in this book several months ago, and the prescription for my eyeglasses has gone from -2.5 to -2.0 diopters in both eyes in that time. My hope is that when our children are a bit older and I am able to experience the joy of getting regular sleep again, I may be able to get to a point where I can do away with my glasses for good. I'm also hopeful that doing these exercises can help both of our sons avoid having to wear prescription eye wear in the future.

You May Also Want to Read:

• Blinking: Why Frequent Blinking Is Essential For Healthy Eyes And Optimal Vision"
• How To Prevent Blindness And Macular Degeneration"
• Relearning To See: Improve Your Eyesight - Naturally!
• Acupressure's Potent Points: A Guide To Self-Care For Common Ailments
• How To Protect Your Health In The Computer Era

Beyond doing the exercises described above on a regular basis, another way to reduce eyestrain and promote your best vision is to use your fingers to apply gentle pressure to three acupressure points that can help to promote healthy blood flow to your eyes and the muscles that surround your eyes.

The best such acupressure points are as follows:

Bladder-2 (BL-2)

BL-2 is located under the innermost section of each of your eyebrows, in the top-inner region of each of your orbital sockets. When pressing on this point, you should feel direct contact with the bony surface of your orbital socket.

Good pictures of this point and how to apply pressure to it can be found on pages 90 and 91 of Acupressure's Potent Points: a Guide to Self-Care for Common Ailments

For those with knowledge of human anatomy: Application of pressure to BL-2 is meant to stimulate optimal blood flow and nerve function to the tendon of the superior oblique muscle, a number of smaller muscles that surround the orbital cavity, branches of the frontal branch of the trigeminal nerve, and branches of the supratrochlear and supraorbital arteries.

Stomach-2 and Stomach-3 (St-2, St-3)

St-2 and St-3 are located under the midline of each of your eyes. St-2 is about one finger-width under each eye, while St-3 is located at the bottom of each of your cheekbones. These points are described together because it is quite simple to apply pressure to both of them at the same time on both sides of your face by using your index and middle fingers.

Good pictures of these points and how to apply pressure to them can be found on pages 90 and 91 of Acupressure's Potent Points: a Guide to Self-Care for Common Ailments

For those with knowledge of human anatomy: Application of pressure to these points is meant to stimulate optimal blood flow and nerve function to the infraorbital nerve, branches of the facial nerve, and branches of the facial and infraorbital arteries and a number of muscles below and within the orbital sockets.

Please note: before self-administering acupressure, it is always best to consult with your doctor to make sure that there are no contraindications to doing so.

While there are a number of online resources that display pictures of different acupuncture points, I highly recommend the acupressure book mentioned above because it provides clear pictures on how to apply pressure to each point.

If you work with a computer on a daily basis, and you haven't read through a two-part article that I wrote a while back on how to stay healthy in the computer era, I recommend that you view that article here: How to Protect Your Health in the Computer Era - this article provides several practical tips on how to protect your eyesight while working with computers.