The state of Britain's eyesight

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With a hearty mix of vegetables, roasted or otherwise, and a meat – or meat alternative – of choice topped off with a helping of gravy, what’s not to love? In fact it’s this variety that gives it several health benefits – specifically when it comes to our eyesight. Giles Edmonds, clinical services director at Specsavers, explained: “While many of us may associate a classic Sunday roast with overindulgence, there are some staples of the classic British dish that are particularly beneficial when it comes to eye health.

“The real key is to always try to cook from scratch to ensure these foods retain those beneficial nutrients.”

These are the roast dinner favourites that could help boost your eyesight, according to Mr Edmonds:

Chicken

When it comes to meat, chicken isn’t only one of the cheapest options, it’s also one of the healthiest.

Chicken is high in zinc – a mineral that our bodies need to use vitamin A properly.

This can help to reduce the risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) – a condition which tends to affect people’s central vision and is one of the biggest causes of sight loss in the UK.

Roast potatoes

A staple to any Sunday dinner, the roast potato (while not seen as healthy if drenched in oil or goose fat) is actually a great source of vitamin C.

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And, if you’re adding sweet potato to the mix this will give you 700 percent of your recommended daily amount of vitamin A.

Sweet potatoes are also high in beta-carotenes which can help in the prevention of cataracts.

Carrots

We’ve all heard that carrots can help us see in the dark, and there is some truth behind it.

That’s because the vitamins within it can help to treat night-blindness, which is caused by vitamin A deficiency.

Yellow carrots are also very rich in lutein which can also help to protect eyes from AMD.

Dark green vegetables

Dark green veg, such as kale, is great for overall health and really rich in lutein which is essential for functioning eyes.

Mint sauce

Making your own with fresh ingredients will give you the most nutritional benefit.

Mint is a particularly good source of vitamin A, which plays an important role in eye health and benefits night vision.

It also has the added bonus of being full of antioxidants – especially when compared to other garden herbs.

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