Working at a computer, with papers in the office, assembling small parts behind a conveyor belt for a long time - all this tires the eyes and sooner or later can lead to myopia.However, simple but regular exercise can not only be an excellent preventive measure against vision loss, but also prevent diseases such as cataracts and glaucoma.
Who invented eye exercises?
Already in ancient times, the problems of restoring vision worried the minds of great scientists, priests and thinkers.Gradually, through trial and error, a certain system of exercises was created, echoes of which can be found in the works of Bates and other authors.Many experts criticize these exercise systems, but others consider them completely reasonable and acceptable.
Many ophthalmologists were also involved in the development of eye exercises, in particular, a professor who worked for many years in senior positions at the Research Institute of Eye Diseases.Under his leadership, a set of exercises was also developed aimed at improving blood circulation, normalizing intraocular pressure, and increasing visual acuity.
Currently, in addition to the usual eye exercises that a person can perform, there are special computer programs and hardware methods for vision correction.
Exercises to improve vision according to the professor’s method
General strengthening exercises.Although many people believe that if you are nearsighted, doing just a few eye exercises is enough, it turns out that a sedentary lifestyle and poor physical fitness themselves contribute to the progression of myopia.The opposite is also true: daily exercise and moderate physical work are an excellent means of preventing vision loss.
Back in the 80s of the last century, it was found that the following types of physical activity help strengthen the ciliary muscle of the eye and improve blood circulation, if the pulse is in the range of 100–140 beats per minute:
- running;
- walking;
- skiing;
- swimming.
However, when performing the same exercises with a heart rate of 180 beats per minute, as well as when jumping rope, gymnastics and acrobatics, progression of myopia is observed due to deterioration of accommodation and blood circulation of the eye.
How can you determine your heart rate to get the most visual benefits from running or walking?Of course, you can simply measure using special instruments, or count the number of heartbeats for 10 seconds, and then multiply by 6. If this seems difficult, then you can use the following method: physical activity is considered moderate if a person is able to speak in abrupt, short sentences or phrases during sports.If the load is too heavy, which will be harmful to the eyes, there is only enough breathing to pronounce only short words, for example, “yes”, “no”, “I don’t know”, etc.
Special exercises
They are divided into three groups: to improve blood circulation and accommodation, as well as strengthen the eye muscles.
Exercises to improve blood circulation and normalize intraocular pressure
The point of these exercises is that you need to periodically with your eyes:
- blink frequently (for example, for a quarter of a minute), then take a short pause to rest and repeat again 4 times;
- close your eyes for 5 seconds (do 8 times);
- Gently massage the eyes through closed eyelids for 1 minute, and then repeat pressing on them 3-4 times with three fingers for a second.
Exercises to strengthen the eye muscles
The muscles of the eyeball become stronger and keep their shape well if we smoothly move our gaze without turning our head:
- vertically up-down, down-up;
- along one, then the second diagonal in the up-down direction;
- horizontally left–right;
- rotate clockwise and vice versa.
It is advisable to do almost every exercise in this block up to 10 times.
Exercises for visual acuity
The exercises in this group are based on moving the gaze from close distance to the distance and back (while the gaze is fixed in each position for 3-5 seconds).It could be:
- bringing the index finger at the level of the nose to the face (so that its image becomes double) and removing it at arm's length;
- looking at a colored mark at eye level on the window and looking at a distant object located along our line of sight for 5–7 minutes daily.
Useful and fun exercises for children
Not every child is able to do such exercises several times a day.And this is where games that train eye accommodation and strengthen their muscles come to the rescue.It is important to exclude those games where there is a high probability of blows to the face, collisions, strong straining or straining.
The following activities can largely replace “boring” exercises for children and help improve vision:
- short fast running (patching, catching up);
- catching and passing the ball;
- throwing a ball (a small bag of sand) into a wall or target on the floor.
During school hours, approximately in the middle of the lesson, it is advisable to blink quickly for 30 seconds, and then sit for 1 minute with your eyes closed, while leaning back in your chair.