We tend to think of our senses as things that are independent of the health of the rest of our bodies. It is hard for us to imagine, for instance, that our sense of touch or taste would be much affected by our overall state of wellbeing. You don’t hear of people suddenly going numb all over because of a bad diet. 

But, the reality is actually quite different. It turns out that what we eat really does affect the senses – and often in a big way. 

Eyesight

Take eyesight, for instance. We all know that as people get older, they can begin to lose their sense of sight. Many of us, however, just assume that that’s the way things go as people get older and there’s not much that we can do about it. But it turns out that eyesight is something that you can protect with diet.

There are two main ways that what you eat protects your eyes. First, it turns out that some of the color pigments in foods that we eat can make their way into the eyes, getting there via the bloodstream. These act as a kind of defensive barrier that helps to soak up some of the damage of incoming light rays. 

The second way food helps is by protecting the tiny blood vessels at the back of the eye in the retina. When blood sugar levels are high from a poor diet, it can damage these tiny structures. And that can cause degradation over time which makes it harder to see. But when you eat a healthy diet, you keep blood sugars low, helping to protect your blood vessels.

Hearing

Diet is also a great way to protect against hearing loss over time. Again, as adults age, they tend to develop hearing problems in both left and right ears. And, eventually, that can make it difficult to listen to people in conversations or hear the radio. 

It turns out, however, that eating a healthy diet can reduce the risk of hearing loss. According to some research, the risk reduction might be as low as 30 percent, which is highly significant. 

Which diets work against hearing loss? Currently, practitioners recommend three different types, all of which are low in processed food. 

The first is the AHEI 2010. It’s not a particularly memorable name for a diet, but its basic principles are easy to understand. It recommends basing your diet around fruits, vegetables and whole grains, while limiting salt and sugar. 

The second diet is the more famous DASH diet – a popular medical diet designed for people wanting to prevent diabetes. It includes lean meats, nuts, fruits and vegetables, and limits salt, fat and sugar. 

Lastly, you might want to consider the Mediterranean diet – probably the most delicious of the lot. This tries to recreate the old-fashioned diet of people living in places like Greece and Italy. It includes beans, herbs, vegetables, and a small amount of olive oil. 
All these diets improve the overall health of your body, which improves the health of your ears at the same time.