We all agree that sunlight is essential and beneficial when exposed to in moderation. However, we’re told not to look at the sun directly and rightly so. The sun’s light is too bright and can damage the eyes. However, a physician called Bates believed otherwise. He claimed that many of patients’ vision improved tremendously thanks to his sun-gazing recommendations. Incidentally, the gentleman also believed that spectacles were unnecessary and even harmful to the eyes!
Bates cautioned that, just like one should not run a marathon without training. one should not look directly at the sun without training. Bates suggested exposing the white part or sclera to direct sunlight for a few seconds and he taught exposing the direct sun on closed eyelids.
In his book, Perfect Sight Without Glasses, Bates described a treatment using a magnifying glass to focus sunlight on the closed lid of an eye. He advised patients to expose the closed eyes to direct sunlight for at least 3 minutes a day and on dark days Bates advised using an infrared light source for “sunning” indoors. Sunning was advised to help refractive problems like nearsightedness and farsightedness but also for glaucoma, cataracts and macular degeneration.
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