Nutritional supplements designed to enhance vision have become a hot topic.
The two most common areas of interest for competitive shooting sports are:
Dry eye problems
Dry eye related tear film issues are caused by reduced eyelid blink patterns during intense concentration. When you're blink pattern is reduced, the tear film will dry out and vision deteriorates. Use of artificial tears can reduce this issue. Additionally, studies show that omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil capsules improve care quality. General recommendations for improving tear film include 1000 to 2000 mg of omega-3 fatty acids per day.
Macular pigment optical density (MPOD)
The macula is the central vision portion of the retina. The retina is the tissue layer in the back of the eye, “basically the film in the camera”, that processes the light that comes into the eye and sends information to the brain. Research shows that the density of the pigment in the immaculate area impacts vision quality.
ZeaVision LLC, makers of EyePromise nutraceuticals describe the benefits as follows:
- Thicker or more “dense” macular pigment is like having “internal sunglasses” that not only protect your vision, but also:
- Improve reaction time – as much as 15% (75-100 milliseconds faster)
- Reduce glare – hats and sunglasses help, but those are external…this is internal
- Improve contrast sensitivity – see a white baseball against a blue sky easier
- Improve photo recovery – for example, a camera flash or bright sun, and the time it takes to see “normally” again
- Improve seeing distance through haze
For you “scientist” kind of guys, the makers of MacuHealth provide a scientific article describing the benefits of supplementation.
Nutraceutical supplements typically contain the carotenoids called lutein and zeaxanthin which are found in the macula. MacuHealth contains a third carotenoid called meso zeaxanthin also found in the macula.
The use of these supplements increases the density found in the macula. The supplements have been used for many years to treat diseased retina problems. While use for vision enhancement is relatively new, there appears to be reasonable scientific evidence of the benefits.