Veggies for your eyes

ScienCentral Video News: Food For Your Eyes

I grew up on a carrot farm, so I've eaten a lot of carrots in my life. My dad always used to tell me how it would boost my eyesight. That's something I've always doubted since I had to get glasses when I was 13. He also told me I'd get big muscles if I ate spinach and that eating bread crusts would make me be able to whistle. I am a physically strong girl, but I chalk that up to good ole' farmer gene stock. I still can't whistle. Carrots on the other hand... Yes, they're good for your eyes. The carotenoids inside them are color pigments. They're what make your carrots orange. The best known carotenoid is Beta Carotene. Inside of you, they turn into Vitamin A. That's essential for our eyesight. It can prevent night blindness. That's great and everything, but now I'm finding out I probably should have eaten a heck of a lot more spinach with those carrots. Leafy vegetables like spinach and kale contain other carotenoids that this most recent study says will better protect your eyes against UV damage that could lead to cataracts. After doing even more research, I found another study that says one of those carotenoids in the leafy green stuff might actually improve my current eyesight as well. The key word here is might. It was still a little too early for those results to be conclusive.
So what's the moral of the story? Eat your carrots. Eat your spinach & kale. But I wouldn't bother with the bread crusts to improve your whistling abilities if you. It doesn't do a damn thing except to prevent wasting the ends of a loaf.