Even if you have 20/20 vision without wearing any type of corrective lenses, the ability to read highway signs isn’t the single factor defining how well you care for your eyes. As it turns out, excessive screen use can lead to tired, dry, fatigued eyes, affecting our ability to focus, eye function, and even vision longevity later in life. Luckily, there are actionable steps we can take to bolster eye nutrition and foster vision longevity—including adding a comprehensive eye health supplement to our daily routine.* Here, we’ve outlined the vision-supporting nutrients to look out for and identified the most innovative eye health supplements available on the market today. “Diet is a key lifestyle factor that can have long-term effects on ocular health. More specifically, the American Optometric Association—as well as scientists from the academic domain—have clearly acknowledged the role of key nutrients in supporting eye health and vision performance,” explains Deshanie Rai, Ph.D., FACN, vice president of scientific & regulatory affairs at OmniActive Health Technologies. “These include vitamins A, C, D, and E; zinc and copper; the macular carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin; and omega-3 fatty acids. Therefore, it’s important to ensure that we’re consuming adequate levels of these nutrients through our daily diets,”* Rai notes. Optometrist and author of What You Must Know About Food and Supplements for Optimal Vision Care Jeffrey Anshel, O.D., FAAO, adds another type of macular carotenoid to the list: meso-zeaxanthin. “Lutein is converted to another form [of zeaxanthin] called meso-zeaxanthin. The tricky part is that meso-zeaxanthin is not in the normal diet—it’s found in shrimp shells, fish skin, and turtle shells,” Anshel says, explaining the need for adequate lutein (and zeaxanthin) through diet and supplementation to make sure you get enough of these essential macular carotenoids. But vision-critical carotenoids don’t end with lutein, zeaxanthin, and meso-zeaxanthin. According to Anshel, astaxanthin is also essential for eye health, as it affects ocular blood flow and promotes overall longevity—especially in our modern digital world.* “They’ve done studies with astaxanthin to show it does help people who are looking at computer screens all day,” he shares, noting astaxanthin’s ability to support reset and recovery.* Karen Hecht, Ph.D., scientific affairs manager at AstaReal, adds that astaxanthin has also been a staple in eye health research conducted in Asia and Europe. The problem? The American diet doesn’t support sufficient intake of this eye-critical carotenoid. “The average American falls short of consuming the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables, which contribute to 90% of dietary carotenoid intake. Astaxanthin is unique among carotenoids, in that it is not found in fruit and vegetables. Instead, astaxanthin is primarily found in wild salmon,” Hecht explains. “Based on average consumption of salmon among Americans, it’s estimated that diet alone provides 11 milligrams of astaxanthin annually.” With all these critical eye nutrients and a serious gap in the average American diet, the need for a comprehensive, daily eye supplement with targeted formulation is clear. “Eyes are exposed to physiological and environmental factors that trigger free radical production. That’s why dietary antioxidants—including vitamin C, vitamin E, lutein, zeaxanthin—have long been studied by the National Eye Institute,” says Hecht. “The important things to look for are bioactive ingredients that can cross the blood-retinal barrier and are supported by double-blind placebo-controlled studies that have demonstrated eye health benefits in healthy participants.” The thing is, like all dietary supplements, finding an effective, high-quality eye supplement can be difficult (to say the least). Here are the top criteria we used while seeking the top eye supplements to include in this list. The heroes here are three famous eye-supporting carotenoids that help combat oxidative stress; astaxanthin fights eye strain and fatigue to enhance visual performance, while macular carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin act like “internal sunglasses” to reduce light sensitivity, promote blue-light filtering and photoprotection, and support eye strain reset and recovery from screen fatigue. This array of vision longevity botanicals is rounded out by supporting players Patagonian maqui berry (to promote eye hydration and fight against dryness caused by excessive screen time) and saffron (to support photoreceptor cells and reduce eye pressure) for a truly comprehensive formula that will support your eyes today, tomorrow, and way down the road.* This high-potency astaxanthin supplement delivers 12 milligrams of sustainably sourced Icelandic astaxanthin with organic virgin coconut oil (for enhanced absorption) in just one daily softgel. * This high-potency eye supplement delivers 20 milligrams of lutein and 4 milligrams of zeaxanthin to block blue-light burnout and improve overall visual function, plus additional eye-supporting antioxidants (astaxanthin, bilberry extract, and vitamin A) to combat ocular oxidative stress.* This formula contains 100 milligrams of grapeseed extract, which contains oligomeric proanthocyanidins (OPCs) that help scavenge free radicals to inhibit oxidative stress and protect the integrity and function of blood vessels in the eye, so your peepers can function well for years to come.* Your daily must-have essential for brain health and eye function, this omega-3 supplement delivers critical neuroprotective fatty acids EPA and DHA to promote eye integrity, visual acuity, retinal and macular health, and overall ocular function. With 1,500 milligrams of EPA plus DHA in their triglyceride form (i.e., the optimal, most bioavailable form) sustainably sourced from 100% wild-caught, cold-water anchovies from the South Pacific (with third-party-verified ORIVO certification). Like all gummy supplements, the list of “other” ingredients is long here but relatively clean. For example, an organic fruit powder blend is added for flavor, and black carrot is included for natural color. Ultimately, the time of day is up to you. That said, we do suggest taking your daily eye supplement with a meal or soon after (i.e., within 30 minutes of a meal). Reason being: Many of the eye supplements on this list are chock full of carotenoids (including astaxanthin, lutein, zeaxanthin, and saffron crocins and crocetins), which are fat-soluble phytonutrient compounds by nature. Taking this supplement around the time or soon after a meal helps facilitate optimal absorption of these plant bioactives.* Along with the stresses of screen time and digital device use, our eyes are also extremely busy and one of the most metabolically active organs in the body! This makes them highly susceptible to oxidative stress (via toxins, free radicals, etc.) from light (indoor and outdoor), pollutants, air temperature, and more. It’s essential for our eyes to have a curated suite of daily nutrients and phytonutrients to meet the demands of both our environment and our eyes’ biological processes. As a nation, our eyes are hungry for these plant ingredients because they represent a major gap in the American diet (due to low fruit, vegetable, and seafood intake). Top food sources of lutein and zeaxanthin are leafy greens, while red seafood—i.e., salmon, lobster, crayfish, and shrimp—are the top food sources of astaxanthin (which they get from algae). All of these are majorly underconsumed in the U.S. Since humans don’t have the physiological machinery to synthesize carotenoids on their own, consuming carotenoids from a nutrient-dense diet and quality supplement regimen daily is critical to reap their many benefits!* While these essential nutrients provide daily foundational nutrition support for women and men, a comprehensive eye supplement like mbg’s eye health+ that includes targeted visual performance plant bioactives via high-potency carotenoids, maqui berry, and saffron can take your vision support to the next level. To discover what industry-leading expert optometrists and neuroscientists think of mbg’s comprehensive eye health+ supplement, read their rave reviews here.
