Eye Excercises

The Cure: Eye exercise : The following exercises will loosen the strained and contracted muscles surrounding the eyes :

a. Keep your head still and relaxed. Gently move the eyes up and down six times. Repeat the same movement twice or thrice at 2-second intervals. The eyes should move slowly and regularly as far down as possible and then as far up as possible.

b. Move the eyes from side to side as far as possible, without any force or effort six times. Repeat two or three times.

c. Hold the index finger of your right hand about 8 inches in front of the eyes, then look from the finger to any other large object ten or more feet away - the door or window will do. Look from one to the other 10 times. Do this exercise fairly rapidly.

d. Move the eyes up gently and slowly in a circle, then move them low in the reverse direction. Do this four times in all. Rest for a second and repeat the movements two or three times, using minimum efforts. All eye muscle exercises should be performed while seated in a comfortable position.

Neck Exercises: Rotate the neck.

a. In circles and semi circles.

b. Move the shoulders clockwise and anti-clockwise brisky, drawing them up as far as possible several times.

c. Allow the head to draw forward and backward as far as possible.

d. Turn the head to the right and left as far as possible several times. These exercises help to loosen up contracted neck muscles which may restrict blood supply to the head.

Sun gazing: Sit on a bench facing the sun with your eyes closed and gently sway sideways several times for 18 minutes. Open the eyes and blink about ten times at the sun and look at some greenery. This helps short sight and is good for inflamed eyes.

Splashing: Splash plain, cold water several times on closed eyes. Rub the closed lids briskly for a minute with a clean towel. This cools the eyes and boosts blood supply.

Palming: Sit comfortably in an armchair or on a settee and relax with your eyes closed. Cover your eyes with your palm, right palm over the right eye and left over the left eye. Do not, however, press down on the eyes. With your eyes completely covered in this manner, allow your elbows to drop to your knees, which should be fairly close together. With your eyes closed thus, try to imagine blackness, which grows blacker and blacker. Palming reduces strain and relaxes the eyes and its surrounding tissues.

Swinging: Stand with your feet 12 inches apart, hands held loosely at the sides, the whole body and mind relaxed. Gently sway your body from side to side, slowly, steadily, with the heels rising alternatively but not the rest of the foot. Imagine you are the pendulum of the clock, and move just as slowly. Swinging should be done in front of a window or a picture. You will see the object moving in the opposite direction of your swing. This must be noted and encouraged. When you face one end of the window or object, blink once. This exercise has a very beneficial effect upon the eyes and nervous system.

Diet: Natural, uncooked foods are the best diet. These include fresh fruits, such as oranges, apples, grapes, peaches, plums, cherries; green vegetable like lettuce, cabbage, spinach, turnip tops; root vegetables like potatoes, turnips, carrot, onions and beetroots; nuts, dried fruits and dairy products.

Cereals are also necessary, but they should only be consumed sparingly. Genuine whole meal bread is the best and most suitable. Nans, cakes, pastries, white sugar, white bread, confectionary, tea, coffee, etc., together with meat, fish, or eggs, soon play havoc with digestion and the body.

The value of vitamin A for improving vision must be stressed. The intake of sufficient quantities of this vitamin is essential as a safeguard against or treatment of defective vision or eye disease of any kind. The best sources of this vitamin are cod liver oil, raw spinach, turnip tops, cream, cheese, butter, egg yolk, tomatoes, lettuce, carrot, cabbage, soya beans, green peas, wheat germ, fresh milk, oranges, and dates.

Yogic exercises: Trataka: In yoga, four exercises have been prescribed for strengthening weak eye muscles, relieving eyestrain and curing of eye disease. They are known as ‘ Trataka‘, which in sanskrit means "Winkles gaze at a particular point" or looking at an object with awareness. The four tratakas are: Dakshinay jatru trataka in which, with face forwards, the eyes are fixed on the tip of the right shoulder; Vamajatru trataka, in which the eyes are fixed on the tip of the left shoulder; Namikagra trataka, in which the eyes are focussed on the tip of the nose, and Bhrumadhya trataka, in which the eyes are focussed on the space between the eyebrows. These exercises should be practiced from a meditative position like padmasana or vajrasana. The gaze should be maintained for as long as you are comfortable, gradually increasing the period from 10-20 and then to 30 seconds. The eyes should be closed and rested after each exercise. Persons with acute myopia should perform the tratakas with their eyes closed.