Easy Yoga for Eye Health

In the modern age, our screen time keeps increasing no matter how hard we try to tone it down. This high screen time leads to eye strain and dry eyes, which can develop into vision impairments over a longer period of time. Moreover, our lifestyles have transformed from active and mobile to largely sedentary, which leads to age related or illness related vision problems like cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and macular degeneration.

The Extent of Vision Impairment

WHO data reveals that 2.2 billion people globally have near or distance vision impairments, out of which 1 billion could have been prevented or can be treated. Out of these, cataracts have led to 94 million people having vision impairments, while age-related macular degeneration caused vision impairments in 8 million people.

There are 7.7 million people whose vision was affected due to glaucoma (a disease that damages the optic nerve and can lead to vision loss or blindness, often caused by high pressure in the eye) and 3.9 million whose vision has been compromised due to diabetic retinopathy. Although each of these illnesses has its own solutions, in this article, we will be talking about eye care in general to improve vision and overcome impairments.

The Importance of Eye Care

Eye care is a concern that isn’t ignored but gets forgotten; one day, you might realise you are not really seeing well and buy eye drops, use them for a week or two, and then somehow forget about them. You might also have increased the amount of amla and carrots in your diet but did not see any improvement.

What if I told you that there is a very simple solution to the problems you cannot exactly see (or see very blurry)? A solution that does not involve eye drops that feel like they’re burning your pupils or amla candies that you eventually end up stashing at the back of the cupboard. Sounds appealing, right? That’s exactly what yoga for eye health is! Let’s see how yoga asanas for eyes can help your screen time not feel like such a headache.

Yoga for Good Eyes

Yoga for eyes is an all-in-one tool that can help in improving your eyesight over continued practice, and if you keep forgetting to use eyedrops on a daily basis, yoga for dry eyes is your best option! Yoga for good eyes works by improving blood circulation and even soothing your eyes; just what you need after a stressful day of hustling. And the best way to stay consistent with your yoga practice is by joining Habuild’s 14-day free online yoga classes!

Here are some yoga asanas for eyes that are comforting:

1. Palming:

This is one of the most common and easy yoga asanas for eyes; you probably already know this one!

1. For this asana, close your eyes and rub your palms together until they are warm.
2. Place your warm palms on your eyelids and gently press to feel the warmth.
3. Breathe deeply and relax in this position
4. Repeat 2-3 times.

Note: Do not apply too much pressure; just place your warm palms lightly on the eyes to absorb their warmth.

2. Eye Movement:

This is a fun asana that stimulates your eye muscles and helps in blood circulation.

1. Sit cross-legged on your mat with your spine straight.
2. Without moving your neck, move your eyes to look from left to right.
3. Move your eyes slowly.
4. Keep doing this exercise for 30 seconds.
5. Try reaching the corners of your eyes with your gaze.
6. You can also try variations of this exercise by either looking up and down, diagonally from upper right to lower left or upper left to lower right.

3. Eye Push-Up:

1. Place your right thumb in front of your face.
2. Stretch your right arm so the thumb is a little away from your face.
3. Focus on the tip of your thumb.
4. Slowly bring your thumb closer to your face and keep focussing your eyes on it.
5. Repeat 15-20 times.
6. Close your eyes and relax them for 10 seconds.

Note: Once the thumb becomes blurry as you bring it near, stop right away. Make sure to not bring your thumb closer than this point in the next round.

4. Blinking:

Blinking is also part of yoga for eye health. This is also a very easy asana, which you can do while sitting on your mat.

1. Blink fast 10-20 times.
2. Close your eyes for 20 seconds with very light pressure.
3. Open your eyes and blink fast again.
4. Repeat 5 times.

Note: Your eyes may feel stressed due to the fast blinking, but that’s okay! You can just gently close and relax them for 10 seconds.

5. Nasikagra Drishti:

In this asana, you have to slowly bring the focus of your eyes to your nose.

1. Keep your thumb in front of your face and focus your gaze on its tip.
2. Slowly bring your thumb closer to your eyes while maintaining the focus.
3. Touch your thumb to your nose and keep looking at your thumb.
4. Wait in this pose for 10 seconds; your eyes may hurt a little, which is completely normal as they’re not used to this much exercise!
5. Take your thumb away slowly.
6. Repeat 5-10 times.
7. Close your eyes and relax for 10 seconds.

Pro Tip: Practice this asana before sleeping for extra relaxing sleep!

Final Takeaways

In this article, we’ve explored some healthy and easy yoga for dry eyes and some yoga for eye health in general that can help you improve your eyesight and also relieve some of the strain your eyes are constantly under. It can be difficult to stay consistent with these exercises, which is why you can join Habuild’s 14-day free yoga classes online to stay accountable and join a healthy community. 

There are a lot of factors that can lead to visual impairments, including diabetes, glaucoma, and cataracts. Beyond illnesses, there are also lifestyle habits that lead to eye strain. Sleeping on time, waking up on time, and reducing your screen time are some beneficial habits that can improve your eyesight.

Restricting screen time can be difficult; try switching up (or asking someone who’s tech-savvy to change) your phone’s display to grayscale. When your phone is black and white and no longer colourful, you will be less tempted to pick it up again and again (often without any reason!). Within a week, you’ll find that your screen time has immensely reduced! Sounds great, right? So let’s work towards fixing eyesight – or simply reducing the strain our eyes have to go through daily by consistently following the exercises and tips given in this article. Happy seeing!