Vitamins and minerals important for eye health

Some vitamins and minerals are vital micronutrients to your eye health. Learn more about them, their recommended daily intake, what to be aware of, and what are good food sources.

Vitamins and minerals are dietary micronutrients that you need to consume in relatively small amounts for your body, including your eyes, to stay healthy and work properly. You should be able to get all the micronutrients from a well-balanced diet, but some people may need extra supplements to reach their nutritional target.

The term ‘vitamin’ is a compound word from ‘vita’ and ‘amine.’ It originated from the meaning the organic micronutrient food factors derived from amine that are vital for life. 

In this post, we will talk about the micronutrients essential to healthy eyes, what you may need to watch out for, and some good food sources. Further, the recommended daily intake discussed here is based on Dietary Supplement Fact Sheets of the National Institute of Health Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS), and it includes the total amount of vitamins consumed - both from food and supplements.

Discuss with your doctor or healthcare providers about your dietary supplements

It is important to know that once a product is classified as a dietary supplement, a company doesn’t have to provide its safety evidence to FDA before the product is marketed. This means that we need to be even more knowledgeable to keep eyes on our own or our loved ones' safety. 

Dietary supplements contain substances that can have a significant effect on the body. Further, some can even interact with medications, interfere with clinic lab tests, or even lead to problems in surgery.  

Consequently, it is important to tell your doctor or healthcare providers about any dietary supplements you are or will be taking, and especially, 

• If you plan to take them to treat a health condition or in place of a prescription medication
• If you plan to take AREDS 2 or other similar dietary supplements, which contain higher than the recommended dietary allowance of micronutrients   
• If you will be combining supplements
• If you will be mixing medicines and supplements
• If you are scheduled to have a surgical procedure

Keep a record of the dietary supplements and drugs that you take. You can use ”My Dietary Supplement and Medicine Record” provided by the ODS that you can print and fill out. For each product, note the name, the dose you take, how often you take it, and the reason for use. You can share this record with your doctor and other healthcare providers to discuss what’s best for your overall health. 

When taking dietary supplements, be alert to the possibility of any side effects, which are also known as adverse events. If you experience an adverse event while taking a dietary supplement, immediately stop using the supplement, and seek medical care or advice.

Just because it may be termed “natural” or that you could get them over-the-counter, it doesn’t mean it is safe. 

Vitamins and minerals for eye health

1. Vitamin A 

Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin, which is also known as retinol. It is essential for maintaining your eyes’ light-sensing cells, also known as photoreceptors. If you don’t consume enough vitamin A, you may experience night blindness, dry eyes, or in some cases, even progress to irreversible blindness.

How much vitamin A do you need?

The average daily recommended amount of vitamin A for adults is 900 micrograms (mcg) per day for men and 600 mcg per day for women. Excess vitamin A is stored in your body, which means you don’t need to consume it every day.

For general eye health, vitamin-A-rich foods are recommended over supplements as you should be able to get all the vitamin A you need from your diet.

What if you take too much vitamin A?

Too much vitamin A can cause severe headaches, blurred vision, nausea, dizziness, and coordination-related problems. In extreme cases, getting too much vitamin A can lead to coma and death. 

Some research suggests that having more than 1.5 mg of vitamin A each day over many years may affect your bones, making them more likely to fracture when you are older.

Unless your doctor advises, the daily upper limit of vitamin A is 3.0 mg per day for adults over 19 years old. 

What do you need to be aware of when taking vitamin A?

If you are taking Orlistat, a weight-loss drug, it decreases the absorption of and causes a low blood level of vitamin A. 

Some medications to treat psoriasis and T-cell lymphoma are made from vitamin A. Taking these medicines with a vitamin A supplement can increase vitamin A to dangerously high levels.  

What are good sources of vitamin A?

Vitamin A is found naturally in many foods, such as beef liver or organ meats, fish, dairy products, and eggs. 

They can also be obtained by consuming provitamin A, which is converted into vitamin A by your body. 

Vegetables rich in provitamin A include green leafy vegetables, such as kale, spinach, and arugula. Other vegetables include red and orange vegetables, like sweet potatoes, winter squashes, bell peppers, and carrots. 

Fruits such as mangos, cantaloupes, or grapefruits are also good sources of provitamin A.

2. Lutein and zeaxanthin 

Lutein and zeaxanthin are carotenoids that may help reduce oxidative damage in the retina. They are also present in the lens and retina of the eye, and a high level of both is thought to be linked with better vision, especially in dim light or where glare is a problem.

How much lutein and zeaxanthin do you need?

The recommended level for eye health is 10 mg per day for lutein and 2 mg per day for zeaxanthin. Research showed that up to 20 mg of lutein daily is safe.

What do you need to be aware of when taking lutein and zeaxanthin?

In excess, your skin may turn slightly yellow.

Using beta-carotene along with lutein and zeaxanthin may reduce the amount of both that the body can absorb.

Taking lutein and zeaxanthin supplements might decrease how much vitamin E the body absorbs and reduce its effects.

What are good sources of lutein and zeaxanthin?

Lutein and zeaxanthin are found in many foods, including egg yolk, corn, asparagus, spinach, kale, peas, and corn. 

3. Vitamin C 

Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin, also called ascorbic acid. It is a powerful antioxidant that may protect your eyes against damaging free radicals. 

How much vitamin C do you need?

The average daily recommended amount of vitamin C for adults is 90 mg per day for men and 75 mg per day for women. If you smoke, add 35 mg to calculate your total daily recommended amount. 

Excess vitamin C is excreted through urine and not stored in the body, so you need it in your diet daily.

For general eye health, vitamin-C-rich foods are recommended over supplements as you should be able to get all the vitamin C you need from your diet.

What if I take too much vitamin C?

Having more than 1,000 mg of vitamin C per day can lead to nausea, diarrhea, and stomach cramps. These symptoms usually disappear once you stop taking vitamin C supplements. 

Unless advised by your doctor, the daily upper limit of vitamin C is 2,000 mg per day for adults.

What do you need to be aware of when taking vitamin C?

Vitamin C supplements can interact or interfere with certain medicines that you take. For example, if you are being treated for cancer or taking cholesterol-lowering drugs, check with your healthcare provider before taking vitamin C or other antioxidant supplements, especially in high doses.

What are good sources of vitamin C?

You can get the recommended amount of vitamin C by eating a variety of fruits and vegetables. Fruits include citrus fruit (such as oranges and grapefruit), kiwifruit, strawberries, and cantaloupes. And as for vegetables, good sources include bell peppers, kale, broccoli, and brussels sprouts. 

Vitamin C may be reduced after cooking or prolonged storage. However, steaming or microwaving may lessen cooking losses. And eating vegetables and fruits without cooking them can optimize your vitamin C intake.

4. Vitamin E 

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin, also known as tocopherol. It is a powerful antioxidant that may protect your eyes against damaging free radicals. In addition, your cells use vitamin E to interact and carry out many vital functions.

Vitamin E deficiency is rare in healthy individuals and is mainly linked to diseases in which fat is not properly digested or absorbed. Its deficiency could cause nerve and muscle damage that results in loss of movement control, muscle weakness, and vision problems. 

How much vitamin E do you need?

The average daily recommended amount of vitamin E for adults is 15 mg per day. Since excess vitamin E is stored in the body, this means you don’t need to consume it every day. 

Most Americans consume less than the recommended amount of vitamin E, but healthy people rarely show signs of insufficient vitamin E intake. 

Some dietary supplement labels list vitamin E in International Units (IUs) rather than mg. 1 IU of the natural form of vitamin E is equivalent to 0.67 mg. 1 IU of the synthetic form of vitamin E is equivalent to 0.45 mg.

What if I take too much vitamin E?

Vitamin E naturally present in food and beverages does not need to be limited as it is not harmful. But, in supplement form, high doses of vitamin E might increase the risk of bleeding or even hemorrhagic stroke. 

Unless advised by your doctor, the upper limit of vitamin E in adults is 1,000 mg per day. This equals 1,500 IU for natural vitamin E supplements or 1,100 IU for synthetic vitamin E supplements.

What do you need to be aware of when taking vitamin E?

Vitamin E supplements can interact or interfere with certain medicines that you take. For example, it can increase the risk of bleeding in people taking anticoagulant or antiplatelet drugs. It may also alter the effectiveness of chemotherapy or radiation therapy for cancer. 

Further, vitamin E plus other antioxidants may reduce the heart-protecting effects of some cholesterol-lowering drugs. 

What are good sources of vitamin E?

You can get recommended amounts of vitamin E from the following sources: 1)  vegetable oils like wheat germ, rapeseed, sunflower, safflower, soya, corn, and olive oils; 2) nuts (such as peanuts, hazelnuts, and almonds) and seeds (like sunflower seeds); 3) green vegetables, such as spinach and broccoli.

5. Zinc 

Zinc is a mineral that can keep your eyes healthy and helps vitamin A create a pigment called melanin, which protects your eyes. 

Zinc deficiency may lead to hair loss, diarrhea, and eye sores; it also makes seeing at night more difficult.  

How much zinc do you need?

Most people in America get enough zinc from their diet. 

The average daily recommended amount of zinc for adults is 11 mg per day for men and 8 mg per day for women. 

For general eye health, zinc-rich foods are recommended over supplements as you should be able to get the zinc you need from your diet.

Vegetarians usually don’t get enough zinc. Zinc in beans and grains typically is not fully absorbed by the body. ODS recommends that vegetarians might need to consume 50% more zinc than the recommended amounts. 

What if I take too much zinc?

Too much zinc can lead to nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, stomach pain, diarrhea, and headaches. And single doses of 10-30 grams of zinc can be fatal.

Unless advised by your doctor, the daily upper limit of zinc is 40 mg per day for adults. When taking doses higher than 40 mg daily, zinc may decrease how much copper the body absorbs.

What do you need to be aware of when taking zinc?

Taking zinc with some antibiotics, antiviral, and rheumatoid arthritis drugs may lead to a reduced medication absorbed by the body. Thiazide diuretics could also decrease the amount of zinc in the body if taken for a long time.  

What are good sources of zinc?

You can get recommended amounts of zinc from oysters (the best source of zinc), red meat, poultry, crab, and lobsters. You could also obtain some from beans, nuts, whole grains, and dairy products. 

6. B vitamins (B6, B9, and B12)*

B vitamins (B6, B9, and B12) can help reduce an amino acid called homocysteine in the blood, which can affect the arteries of the retina. 

A deficiency in B vitamins can lead to problems with the optic nerve and an increased risk of macular degeneration. In severe cases, it can cause reduced vision or blind spots. 

*Vitamin B6 is also known as pyridoxine, B9 is folate, and B12 is cobalamin.  

How much B vitamins do you need?

Most people in America can get enough B vitamins from their diet. 

The average daily recommended amount of B6 for adults over 50 is 1.7 mg per day for men and 1.5 mg per day for women; B9 for adults is 400 mcg per day in dietary folate equivalents; And, B12 for adults is 2.4 mcg per day.  

What if I take too much B vitamins?

Taking high levels of vitamin B6 from supplements for a year or longer can cause severe nerve damage, leading people to lose control of their bodily movements. The symptoms usually stop when they stop taking the supplements. Unless advised by your doctor, the daily upper limit of vitamin B6 is 100 mg per day for adults.

Further, taking large amounts of B9 supplements might hide a vitamin B12 deficiency because these supplements can correct the anemia due to vitamin B12 deficiency, but not the nerve damage. Unless advised by your doctor, the daily upper limit of vitamin B9 is 1.0 mg per day for adults. 

What do you need to be aware of when taking B vitamins?

B vitamins are known to interact with gastric acid inhibitors, diabetes medication (metformin), anti-seizure or anti-epileptic medications, antibiotics, and anti-cancer agents. 

What are good sources of B vitamins?

You can get the recommended amount of vitamin B6 from poultry, fish, and organ meat. Starchy vegetables or fruits, such as sweet potatoes, bananas, papayas, oranges, and cantaloupes, are also rich in this vitamin. 

As for B9, some good sources are beef liver, spinach, asparagus, brussels sprouts, and fruits, such as oranges. Nuts, beans, and peas (such as peanuts, black-eyed peas, and kidney beans) are also rich in vitamin B9.

Unlike the other two types of vitamins, plant foods have no vitamin B12 unless fortified. Clams and beef liver are the best source of vitamin B12. Fish, meat, poultry, eggs, milk, and other dairy products are also good sources. 

Key takeaway

Eating a balanced diet can provide you with all the nutrients that you need for a healthy body as well as healthy eyes. Even though dietary supplements may be convenient and have strong effects, they also potentially carry more safety risks than your foods. 

Talk to your doctor and healthcare providers and make sure they are aware of your plan to take or know what micronutrient supplements you are taking.   

[mcg: microgram; mg: milligram] 

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