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8 Sight savers to share [slideshow]
Nitric Oxide
Results of a 25-year study 2 indicate that eating green, leafy vegetables — at least one and a half cups daily — may lessen your risk of glaucoma. People living with glaucoma are at increased risk of losing their eyesight.
“We found those consuming the most green leafy vegetables had a 20 to 30 percent lower risk of glaucoma,” said study leader Jae Kang. Kang is an assistant professor of medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston.
What is it about green leafy vegetables that can protect you from glaucoma — and possibly save your eyesight?
“In glaucoma, we think there is an impairment of blood flow to the optic nerve,” Kang said. “And an important factor that regulates blood flow to the eye is a substance called nitric oxide. When you consume the higher amount of green leafy vegetables, you have greater levels of nitric oxide in your body.”
To benefit the most and guard against glaucoma, choose from this list of nitric oxide-boosting, green leafy vegetables that provide 250 mgs of nitrate per 3.5 ounces. Fresh, high-nitrate vegetables, like these, help your body create significant amounts of nitric oxide: Beets, Arugula, Celery, Lettuce, Spinach, Watercress, Chervil, Endive, Fennel, Leek and Celeriac.
