Better Sight without Glasses

by Harry Benjamin

The author, Harry Benjamin was a distinguished naturopath who took up his profession after being cured of extreme myopia as a result of practicing the system of eye training for defective vision devised by Dr. William H. Bates, a New York opthalmologist. But in one way Benjamin improved on Bates, fro the latter's system took no account of correct diet as an aid to improved vision. Benjamin's eyes improved when he first started the Bates treatment but then they refused to respond any further, until a naturopath friend put him on a Nature Cure diet. This consists of eating natural, uncooked fruits and vegetables, but it is not necessary to become a complete vegetarian in order to benefit from the system. Meat or fish are not forbidden but the author cautions that they should be eaten sparingly and be as fresh as possible.

Genres: Self Help, Health

123 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1929

Reviews

[Rosemary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps unfair to rate without trying the exercises but I think anybody who does everything he suggests would have to be desperate. Nothing to eat but fruit, vegetables, salad and the occasional potato, slice of bread, or piece of fish or chicken, and you have to find probably an hour a day to do the exercises, plus having time when you don't wear glasses or contact lenses - fine for people who can safely go for a walk or cook dinner without aids to vision, but for those of us who would get hit by traffic, cut off our fingers or burn our hair (due to peering too closely into pans) it is rather impractical. When this book was written, in 1929, I suppose people did a fair amount of sitting around listening to the radio or chatting, when one could practise relaxing or exercising the eyes without feeling one was wasting time. These days it is harder to imagine sitting doing nothing that requires vision, unless on the verge of blindness (as Harry Benjamin was himself when he took up these practices).

[Tami · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review is based solely on the writing and content of the book. I have not yet fully implemented the method it describes, so I cannot assess its effectiveness. I will update this review once I’ve followed the method for a longer period.

Better Sight Without Glasses by Harry Benjamin is a concise, easy-to-understand book focused on improving eyesight through natural methods. Originally published in the 1920s, it falls under the category of alternative medicine. As is commonly known, mainstream ophthalmology does not support the idea that vision can improve through exercises or natural means, only surgery or corrective lenses are typically recommended. This book offers a very different perspective.

It is based on the Bates Method but is simplified and made more accessible for general readers. The language is straightforward, and it includes illustrations to demonstrate the exercises.

Benjamin outlines three pillars for improving vision: relaxation, muscle exercises, and nutrition.

*Relaxation involves both the mind and the eye muscles.
*Muscle exercises aim to improve the tone of the eye and neck muscles.
*Nutrition supports the body’s healing processes and emphasizes fresh, whole foods, particularly those rich in vitamin A, which is scientifically known to support eye health, especially night vision.

I plan to try the method, though it seems a bit challenging. The main relaxation technique, called palming, involves covering the eyes with cupped hands to block out all external light without applying pressure. It’s recommended to do this for ten minutes, three times a day. That might sound short, but when you’re actually doing it, it feels endless, especially when you're used to constant stimulation.

The book also advises reducing or eliminating the use of glasses whenever safely possible. Of course, it doesn’t suggest putting yourself at risk; if you're doing something that requires sharp vision (like cooking, crossing the street, or operating machinery) you should wear your glasses. But for low-risk situations, especially at home, the idea is to allow your eyes to work naturally and strengthen over time. It even encourages reading without glasses, even if it means holding the book close to your face.

The neck exercises are simple and take just a few minutes. I tried one and could immediately feel how much tension I carry in that area, so I believe there may be something to this approach.

[PuPilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

A levonást azért kapta, mert szerintem az étrendi tanácsokat, böjtöt kissé túlzásba viszi, és sokszor ismétli önmagát.
A természettudománnyal kapcsolatban a tudományos oldalt képviselem, de mindig van bennem egy kis érdeklődés, és ha logikusan, okosan van elmagyarázva egy ilyesféle módszer, illetve nem látom azt se, hogy esetleg ártalmas lehet, vagy szimplán csak valamit el akar adni nekem, akkor vevő vagyok rá.
Próba szerencse…

Bővebben a blogon: http://pupillaolvas.blogspot.hu/2013/...

[Jeremy Benjamin · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is pure quackery from cover to cover. I read it 40 years ago and young and naive enough to believe it. No serious eye professional will tell you to do the things this book says, as they are a waste of your time and will have no effect on your sight.

[Magid · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good book, but I don't think the excercises really worked for me. I'm still myopic...

[Judit Papp · Rating 4 out of 5]

A módszer működését akkor tudnám igazolni , ha végigcsinálnám a gyakorlatokat, ami csupán azért lehetetlen számomra mert olyan sok időbe telik, ami szerintem kizárt hogy egy dolgozó felnőtt képes én yi időt szakítani…pl van olyan gyakorlat amihez 3x10-30 percet ajánl,,, de az másfél óra!!!!! És ez csak egy!!!! Node egy próbát az is megér ha kevesebb ideig próbálom a gyakorlatokat, és majd szólok ha eldobtam a szemüveget 🤗😁

[K. Vasudevan]

he recomends butter milk and carret to live a helathy life. On the time when that book published in america his view matches american people on that time. Now it is as well as suit for all the world.

[Samane · Rating 2 out of 5]

روشهاي مختلف ايجاد آرامش: 1.استاده از كف دست 2.تاب خوردن 3.هر 10 ثانيه پلك زدن 4.چشمهاي بسته زيرنور آفتاب(10دقيقه) 5.آب سرد

[Karu]

i am someone who have poor eyesight and i came to know there are some suggestions given y author to improve you eye sights so i just wanted to know it .but i cant read this book

[_ideenuniversum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sehr interessantes Buch. Mal schauen ob es hilft. Wenn ja, wäre das ja wirklich richtig gut!☀️

[Rajiv · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book

[May Ling]

I have an older copy. Clearly this book was written long before the optometrists got together and figured out a way to charge a lot of lasik and the like. In theory I know this probably would work, but I do agree that many are going to be too lazy to actually go through with the exercises that are prescribed.

I do like the exercises though and the suggestions about stress as relates to vision (and other ailments for that matter). I am going to probably use some of the suggestions on how to relax the eyes as that actually correlates well with a few other books I've read about relaxation (i.e. relax the eyes and everything starts to relax). The palm position described in the book definitely does cause a fairly immediate relaxation in the muscles behind the eyes.

[Eszter Beáta · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contains a lot of useful ideas and exercises, but I am not as enthusiastic about the method after reading as I was before. It is possible that the method is working but I'm not sure yet.

[Raghupathy Ram · Rating 5 out of 5]

an excellent book on how to correct your vision with exercises and diet. BTW Harry Benjamin is one of the exponents of vegetarianism

[Jer · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent and simple summary of up-to-date practices to restore natural vision