Make eye health part of your lifestyle.

You may already know that eating right, exercising and quitting smoking can reduce your risk of diabetes, cancer, heart disease, hypertension and probably another dozen or so conditions. But did you know exercise can also keep your eyes healthy?

Dozens of studies prove it. Here's what research has to say about other sight-saving tips:

* Stop smoking. Smoking greatly increases your risk of getting nuclear cataracts, the most common type of cataracts in the U.S. It also increases your risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

* Protect your eyes from the sun. Thank Chesapeake Bay fishermen for this knowledge. When researchers examined the relationship between exposure to sunlight and cataracts or AMD, they found that fishermen who protected their eyes from the harsh glare of the sun and its damaging ultraviolet (UV) rays were significantly less likely to develop these conditions at younger ages than those who went bare-eyed. Make sure you wear sunglasses that protect against UV light when you're outside, even in winter, and wear broad-brimmed hats whenever possible, particularly in the summer.

* Eat your vegetables. Studies suggest that diets high in the nutrients lutein and zeaxanthin may reduce your risk of developing both cataracts and AMD, and may even slow progression of these diseases once they've begun. Both have strong antioxidant properties, which may help repair some of the oxidative damage that contributes to both conditions. You can find both nutrients in a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, with particularly high concentrations in leafy green vegetables such as spinach, collards and kale.

* Take your vitamins. In October 2001, the eye world got some stunning news: the results of a major study found that high levels of antioxidants and zinc slow the progression of advanced AMD and vision loss. Researchers found that those at high risk of developing the advanced stages of AMD cut their risk about 25 percent when they took a high-dose combination of vitamin C (500 mg), vitamin E (400 IU), beta-carotene (15 mg) and zinc (80 mg as zinc oxide). In the same high-risk group, those with intermediate AMD or advanced AMD in one eye but not the other, the nutrients reduced the risk of vision loss from advanced AMD by 19 percent. Of course, check with your health care professional first before you start taking such high doses of supplements.

* Eat your fish and skip the junk food. A study published in 2001 found that people whose diets were high in omega-3 fatty acids, particularly prevalent in cold-water fish like mackerel, tuna and anchovies, and low in omega-6 fatty acids (found in many fat-filled snack foods like commercially prepared pie, cake, cookies and potato chips) were significantly less likely to develop AMD than those whose diets were high in omega-6 fatty acids and low in omega-3 fatty acids. In fact, if your diet was high in omega-6 at all--even if you still ate plenty of fish--the protective effects of the omega-3 fatty acids disappeared. Nix fatty snacks and aim for fish at least twice a week. If you can't stand fish, try omega-3 fatty acid supplements.

* Fish could also help with dry eye disease. A study from Harvard researchers presented at the 2003 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology's annual meeting evaluated the diets of 32,470 women participating in the Women's Health Study. The study found those who ate the least amount of fish (thus getting the least amount of omega-3 fatty acids) had the highest risk of dry eye disease. Even tuna fish (yes, the kind that comes in a can) protected against this condition.

* Walk. Some evidence suggests that regular exercise can reduce the intraocular pressure in people with glaucoma. In one study, glaucoma patients who walked briskly four times per week for 40 minutes lowered their IOP enough so they could stop taking their beta blocker eye drops, a common glaucoma treatment.

For more information on specific eye conditions, visit www.healthywomen.org.

By Pamela Peeke, MD, MPH NWHRE Medical Advisor

Dr. Peeke is a Pew Foundation Scholar in Nutrition and Metabolism, and Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland in Baltimore. She writes about health and lifestyle issues important to all women.