When a problem develops with your eyes, therefore, it will affect most of your life in one way or another. So it pays to take care of your eyes. The American Optometric Association offers these self-help tips:

• Wear Shades--To help guard against cataracts and macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness, developing in later years, everyone--children and adults--needs to wear sunglasses with maximum ultraviolet protection. That means lenses that block 99 to 100 percent of both UV-A and UV-B.
• Eat Right--Eating a low-fat diet that includes at least five fruit and vegetable servings daily may help prevent macular degeneration. Multi-vitamin supplements are an alternative. Or ask your optometrist about supplements specially formulated for the eyes.
• Seek Regular Eye Care--Get a thorough eye health and vision examination on a regular basis. That means every year or two until age 65 and annually thereafter. Vision changes and eye diseases can occur without noticeable early symptoms.

• Be Alert for Symptoms--Between examinations, be alert for symptoms indicating a need for prompt consultation with your optometrist. These include blurred or distorted vision, headaches, pain of any kind in the eye, squinting, eye irritation and eye fatigue.
• Practice Eye Safety Habits--Wear the proper eye safety equipment on the job, when doing eye hazardous activities at home or when participating in eye hazardous sports, such as tennis or racquetball.
• Give Your Eyes a Break--Take a 10-minute break every hour or two from your computer, other close work or television viewing to relax your eyes by looking in the distance. Prolonged concentration on any close work--video games, computer screens, paperwork, sewing, reading--may contribute to the development of nearsightedness.
• Watch Drugs--Ask your doctor, pharmacist or optometrist about how your prescription and non-prescription drugs may affect your vision. Keep all your doctors, including your optometrist, informed about the drugs you are taking and any side effects you notice.
• Follow Contact Lens Instructions--If you wear contact lenses, follow your optometrist's wearing and care instructions and return for follow-up visits as recommended. Failure to do so can contribute to eye health problems.