Having high levels of pressure in your eyes (ocular hypertension) is one of the most uncomfortable feelings a person can experience. Ocular hypertension can lead to vision impairment, and even leave permanent damage.
Whether you suffer from migraines, tension headaches, or glaucoma, treating it effectively can feel impossible -especially if you prefer to avoid using medication.
That’s why we’re here to give you 5 natural ways to lower eye pressure, and relieve your pain.
1 . Eat a healthy diet Lower insulin levels: avoid sugar, carbs, starches, and bread
Eating a healthy diet is one of the best ways to regulate and reduce internal eye pressure. Making sure you include omega-3 fatty acids, particularly DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid) 2-3 times per week will help to prevent pressure from building in the eyes. Some good sources of DHA are tuna, salmon, and sardines.
An eye-healthy diet must also avoid trans fats found in food like margarine and fried foods, as these fats prevent omega-3’s from working properly, resulting in an increase in eye pressure.
Avoid foods that will boost your insulin levels like sweets, pasta, rice, and bread. Instead, eat plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits. If your plate isn’t colorful, you need to add some veggies!
Maintaining a healthy diet will not only help your eye health, but you’ll feel better, as your overall health and wellness will improve.
2. Exercise
Exercising regularly will always make you feel better, but if you suffer from internal eye pressure, getting out and exercising might be the last thing on your mind.
In reality though, exercising for just 30 minutes on most days of the week will help to reduce blood pressure, eye pressure, and increase blood flow to the eyes. All of this will help to reduce your risk of developing glaucoma, and prevent loss of vision if you’re suffering from glaucoma.
After exercising, you’ll not only feel a little bit better, but your body and immune system will thank you!
3. Sleep with your head elevated
Trying to get to sleep when all you can think about are your eyes getting ready to explode is frustrating, and nearly impossible. Sleep is sacred, and nothing should keep you from it!
If you’re unable to sleep due to pain caused by internal eye pressure, you should try to sleep with your head elevated. Get yourself a wedge-shaped pillow that allows your head to rest at a 20 degree angle. This has been shown to reduce internal eye pressure levels during sleep, significantly reducing the risk of glaucoma.
4. Manage your stress
You might not realize it right away, but the amount of stress you carry throughout your day to day life plays a significant role in your overall health, all the way down to the pressure in your eyes.
Stress can actually increase internal eye pressure, putting you even more at risk of developing glaucoma.
Techniques used to manage stress include yoga and meditation. Meditation is used all over the world to help manage and reduce stress. If practiced daily, meditation will help to sharpen your mind as well as lower blood pressure, and even internal eye pressure.
5. Marijuana
While smoking marijuana might not be the first thing your mind jumps to when considering how to treat excessive internal eye pressure, it’s actually one of the most widely known ways to treat glaucoma.
There are standard treatments for glaucoma which you might need for the rest of your life, but marijuana reduces internal eye pressure for 3-4 hours and does so completely naturally.
The best way to find out if it will work for you is to give it a try. You might just like it more than your normal medication! If you’re interested in learning more about how marijuana is used to treat symptoms related to glaucoma, you can read about it here.
Conclusion
Whether you suffer from migraines or glaucoma, reducing eye pressure is an important step towards relief. We think if you follow these five tips for naturally reducing eye pressure, you’ll be feeling better in no time at all!
