Lutein is a type of carotenoid antioxidant popularly known for protecting the health of your eyes. Just like other categories of antioxidants, lutein is typically found in fruits and vegetables, and especially leafy greens, and other types that are yellow or deep orange.

In fact, the number of colors in your favorite foods will determine the amount of lutein you get.

Alongside another eyesight-boosting antioxidant known as zeaxanthin, lutein is rich in anti-inflammatory, foods that fight cancer including broccoli, kale, and lots of other green vegetables, citrus fruits, and eggs yolks all of which assist in protecting your eyes from oxidative pressure.

How Lutein Works

Every time we take foods containing lutein or take it in supplement form, it is easily carried around your body, and especially to the regions of the eyes known as the lens and the macula.

In fact, there exist 600 different kinds of carotenoids, but only around 20 of them make their way into your eyes. Out of the 20, zeaxanthin and lutein are the only ones that are piled up in large quantities into the macular part of the eyes.

The antioxidant powers of lutein assists in fighting free radical damage usually caused by sun exposure or blue light, a poor diet, and all other aspects that escalate the risk of having age-related sight loss or disorders such as cataracts and macular degeneration.

One of the crucial roles of the lens is to collect and also focus light on the retina, and this is the reason why your lens must remain clear without cloudiness that's symptomatic of cataracts.

The primary cause of cloudy lens is radical damage caused by oxidation, the reason why we need antioxidants to assist in neutralizing these free radicals.

The people with existing eye damage should also include plenty of lutein in their diets to stop the prevailing condition from escalating and damaging the vision further. However, lutein is not only beneficial for older people but for everyone since it's important to take preventative measures to support your vision and the general health of your eyes.