How to Lower Eye Pressure Before an Eye Test

There are no quick fixes to improving eye health. In order to lower eye pressure, it is important to make a deliberate effort to lead a healthy lifestyle. Keeping a journal of your daily efforts to lower your IOP, or intraocular pressure, will help you and your doctor recognize areas for improvement and successes. This will help you achieve maximum eye health and vision.

Things You'll Need

• Pen
• Notebook or journal

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Instructions

• 1

  Watch what you eat. Reduce your intake of sodium chloride or salt and drink six to eight glasses of water throughout the day. A balanced diet containing fruits and vegetables is ideal. In your journal, keep track of what you are eating.

  Review this log weekly to make sure that you are substituting herbs and spices for salt. When purchasing prepackaged grocery items, look for low and no sodium alternatives. Add vitamin supplements such as omega-3, beta-carotene and vitamins C and E to your daily routine to help protect your optical nerve from damage.

• 2

  Stop staring. Spending hours in front of a computer or television is not good for your eye health. Limit your time staring continuously. Periodically, get up and exercise your eyes. Close your eyes and move them in circles each direction.

• 3

  Get movin'! Just 20 minutes of low impact aerobic exercises daily can decrease IOP by 20 to 25 percent. Some examples of exercise are biking, swimming and walking. Document the type of exercise that you add to your daily routine to review with your doctor. Certain high impact aerobic activities can increase your eye pressure, like running.

  Activities that reduce stress are also great for minimizing eye pressure. Yoga, mediation and Tai Chi are great examples.

• 4

  Caffeinate with caution. Limit the amount of caffeine that you are consuming. Small amounts of caffeine have not been proven to affect eye pressure, but multiple cups of coffee or caffeinated soda can be detrimental to eye health. Limit your intake or switch to drinks with lower caffeine levels such as tea or decaffeinated alternatives.

• 5

  Follow the doctor's orders. Your eye care professional will prescribe a plan of action best designed to lower your eye pressure. This will include a combination of medication and eye drops. Take these as directed and make sure to let your doctor know if you notice any adverse reactions to this regimen so that it can be adjusted accordingly.