57 min
Eye Health and Nutrition for Children with Dr. Neda Gioia The Momologist™
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- Parenting
DISCLAIMER: The views provided in this episode and the show notes are for informational purposes only. No material is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before undertaking a new health care regimen, and never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on this episode.
“Teach them young. Teach them what they’re eating, why they’re eating it,” says Dr. Neda Gioia, optometrist and founder of Integrative Vision. In today’s episode of The Momologist™, Dr. Gioia delves deep into the links between child nutrition and eye health.
Dr. Gioia explains that nutrition is a vital component of eye health due to the antioxidants we need to get from our foods. She explains the importance of carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin, for ocular health and identifies which foods contain these antioxidants. When children don’t eat well, nutritional deficiencies can cause ocular damage as their bodies develop. Dr. Gioia also addresses key questions around screen time, the impacts of blue light, eye protection for sports, and more.
Tune into this week’s episode of The Momologist™ for a conversation about the role nutrition plays in eye health. Join us as Dr. Gioia tackles common myths and misconceptions about vision and addresses which foods to include in your child’s diet to promote healthy eye development. If you have concerns about your child’s ocular health or simply wish to ensure healthy eye development, don’t miss out on this episode!
Quotes
• “If we isolate our questions to just the eye, we’re going to miss so many other connections that we might be able to see." (13:39-13:46)
• “Kids are not actually eating well…The problem is, when these eyes age, are we starting them on the right foot? How can we protect the vision as the child develops? Lutein and zeaxanthin, which are the best type of carotenoids for the eyes, found in green leafy vegetables as the highest percentage…as well as the yellow of the yolk of an egg, goes into the eye and directly plants itself in parts of the eye especially something called the macula. The macula is a teeny tiny spot in the eye, in the retina, that contributes to over 90% of your vision and we have to replenish that area of the eye with these high level antioxidants. Kids are being exposed to higher amounts of reactive oxygen species, oxidation, which is unfortunately more apparent nowadays than maybe 100 years ago. We want to replenish them with these higher level antioxidants more consistently and the dietary intake is really important.” (16:42-18:35)
• “The problem with ocular nutrition is the problem with nutrition, period. The one problem that we have in ocular nutrition is these eyes are aging and they’re becoming more nearsighted. The rate of nearsightedness is increasing by a very high rate in children and this is a global problem, not a USA problem. Being nearsighted in and of itself puts you at risk for certain ocular diseases. It’s not just a simplistic ‘I wear glasses and contacts.’ That's the easy thing. It increases my risk of retinal damage, macular issues, glaucoma issues as I go into my elder years. So that’s a double whammy for these kids.” (18:50-19:47)
• “The biggest foods are your classic vegetables and fruits. The biggest vegetables for ocular carotenoids are your green leafy vegetables and it’s a daily ingestion not weekly.” (19:51-20:07)
• “First we have to step back. The glasses you buy in general have to go through checks and balances. Blue light unfortunately has zero checks and balances. It is an unregulated word. You have no idea what you’re getting. You’re starting already with confusion. The label has zero regulation…You have to be very care
DISCLAIMER: The views provided in this episode and the show notes are for informational purposes only. No material is intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before undertaking a new health care regimen, and never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on this episode.
“Teach them young. Teach them what they’re eating, why they’re eating it,” says Dr. Neda Gioia, optometrist and founder of Integrative Vision. In today’s episode of The Momologist™, Dr. Gioia delves deep into the links between child nutrition and eye health.
Dr. Gioia explains that nutrition is a vital component of eye health due to the antioxidants we need to get from our foods. She explains the importance of carotenoids, lutein and zeaxanthin, for ocular health and identifies which foods contain these antioxidants. When children don’t eat well, nutritional deficiencies can cause ocular damage as their bodies develop. Dr. Gioia also addresses key questions around screen time, the impacts of blue light, eye protection for sports, and more.
Tune into this week’s episode of The Momologist™ for a conversation about the role nutrition plays in eye health. Join us as Dr. Gioia tackles common myths and misconceptions about vision and addresses which foods to include in your child’s diet to promote healthy eye development. If you have concerns about your child’s ocular health or simply wish to ensure healthy eye development, don’t miss out on this episode!
Quotes
• “If we isolate our questions to just the eye, we’re going to miss so many other connections that we might be able to see." (13:39-13:46)
• “Kids are not actually eating well…The problem is, when these eyes age, are we starting them on the right foot? How can we protect the vision as the child develops? Lutein and zeaxanthin, which are the best type of carotenoids for the eyes, found in green leafy vegetables as the highest percentage…as well as the yellow of the yolk of an egg, goes into the eye and directly plants itself in parts of the eye especially something called the macula. The macula is a teeny tiny spot in the eye, in the retina, that contributes to over 90% of your vision and we have to replenish that area of the eye with these high level antioxidants. Kids are being exposed to higher amounts of reactive oxygen species, oxidation, which is unfortunately more apparent nowadays than maybe 100 years ago. We want to replenish them with these higher level antioxidants more consistently and the dietary intake is really important.” (16:42-18:35)
• “The problem with ocular nutrition is the problem with nutrition, period. The one problem that we have in ocular nutrition is these eyes are aging and they’re becoming more nearsighted. The rate of nearsightedness is increasing by a very high rate in children and this is a global problem, not a USA problem. Being nearsighted in and of itself puts you at risk for certain ocular diseases. It’s not just a simplistic ‘I wear glasses and contacts.’ That's the easy thing. It increases my risk of retinal damage, macular issues, glaucoma issues as I go into my elder years. So that’s a double whammy for these kids.” (18:50-19:47)
• “The biggest foods are your classic vegetables and fruits. The biggest vegetables for ocular carotenoids are your green leafy vegetables and it’s a daily ingestion not weekly.” (19:51-20:07)
• “First we have to step back. The glasses you buy in general have to go through checks and balances. Blue light unfortunately has zero checks and balances. It is an unregulated word. You have no idea what you’re getting. You’re starting already with confusion. The label has zero regulation…You have to be very care
57 min