Want to Keep Your Eyes in Tip-Top Shape? Here’s How

Summary

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Chasing Life Podcast Summary

Episode: Want to Keep Your Eyes in Tip-Top Shape? Here’s How

Host: Dr. Sanjay Gupta
Date: March 31, 2026
Podcast: CNN Podcasts, Chasing Life

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Episode Overview

This episode centers on healthy aging, specifically addressing two key questions from listeners:

1. How to best care for and protect your eyes as you age
2. The real difference between muscle mass and muscle strength (and which matters more as we grow older)

Dr. Sanjay Gupta brings his expertise as a physician and journalist to answer practical health questions, with help from expert guest Dr. Donald Dengel, Professor of Exercise Physiology at the University of Minnesota.

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1. Eye Health: "Keeping Your Super Peepers in Shape"

Listener: Deb Jones from Kentucky
Segment Start: [00:20]

Key Discussion Points

• Anxiety and Eye Surgery:
  Deb, the caller, describes having had several eye surgeries and asks what she can do—beyond surgeries—to protect her eyes. [00:28]

• Diet and Nutrition:
  “A nutritious diet can help us keep our eyes as healthy as they can be for as long as they can be. You’ve probably heard of the Mediterranean diet…leafy greens, colorful fruits, nuts, beans, fatty fish like salmon—all these foods can help support long term eye health.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [02:49]

  • Emphasis on:
    • Vitamin C & E rich foods (oranges, grapefruit, kiwifruit, almonds, avocados)
    • Zinc (beans, lentils, seeds, seafood, eggs)
    • Lutein & Zeaxanthin (kale, spinach, broccoli, asparagus, colorful fruits)
    • Omega 3/6 fatty acids (salmon, trout, sardines, walnuts, sunflower oil)
  • These nutrients are shown to reduce progression of age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

• Screen Time & Eye Strain:

  • 20-20-20 Rule: “Every 20 minutes look away from your screen to a spot about 20 feet in front of you for 20 seconds…It can help reduce eye strain.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [03:40]

• Eye Drops: Choosing the Right One

  • Four Main Types:

    • Artificial tears (for dry eyes)
    • Antihistamine drops (itching/redness from allergies)
    • Redness-reducing drops (should not be used daily)
    • Nighttime/thicker drops (for overnight use)

  • Preservative Vs. Preservative-Free:

    • “If you find yourself reaching for eye drops often, you might want to consider switching over to a preservative-free version.” [04:50]
    • Chronic use of preserved drops can damage the eye’s protective coating.

  • Caution:

    • If using drops more than 2-3 times/day, see an eye doctor—persistent symptoms can mean deeper issues.
    • Redness-relieving drops: only use for special occasions (“the vessels will dilate and become bigger, so the eyes may become even more red” [05:30]).

• Sun Protection:

  • Sunglasses that block “99 to 100 percent of UVA and UVB radiation” are essential to prevent UV-related eye damage [06:09]
  • Use safety glasses for hazardous activities/sports.

• Lifestyle & Medical Factors:

  • Control diabetes, high blood pressure, and other health conditions that impact eye health.
  • Get regular eye exams: catch problems early!

Memorable Quotes

• “What is the use of muscle mass or having large muscles if you’re not able to do the basic things your body needs to do every day?” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [12:52]
• “Deb, I hope these tips can help put your super peepers on the road to good eye health for years to come.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [07:04]

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2. Muscle Mass vs. Muscle Strength

Listener: Ciro, a 55-year-old active gym-goer
Segment Start: [09:20]

Key Discussion Points

• The Listener’s Dilemma:
  Ciro describes being highly active but “still feel[ing] weak” despite good routines [09:20]

• Muscle Mass ≠ Muscle Strength:

  • “Feeling weaker isn’t only about how much muscle you have. It’s about how well that muscle works.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [10:38]
  • As we age, muscle quality and function matter more than size.

• Expert Input: Dr. Donald Dengel

  • Analogy: Basketball jump height doesn’t always improve with added muscle, because “now you’ve got 10 more pounds you have to lift off the ground as well.” [11:47]
  • Emphasizes “functional muscle”—muscle that works for life activities, not just size or gym strength.

• Functional Training over Pure Strength:

  • “Maybe I should target exercises that look at that functional use of the muscle versus just pure size or pure strength, because I have to figure out what it is that I want to accomplish.” —Dr. Donald Dengel [12:23]
  • Focus on movements that mirror real life (lifting groceries, reaching shelves, etc.), not just isolated lifts.
  • Key: Building strength in ways that matter for daily life and independence.

• Aging and Change:

  • Strength will decline with age even if you stay active; the goal is to slow this, not stop it.
  • Flexibility declines unless actively maintained; incorporate it into your routines.

• Switch Up Your Routine:

  • “Variety is the good spice of life. Even when we think about our exercise program…” —Dr. Donald Dengel [14:53]
  • Muscle adapts to repeated movements. Change exercises to challenge muscles differently and functionally.

• Consistency is Key:

  • Do functional exercises 2-3 times per week; once weekly isn’t enough to maintain strength.
  • Be consistent but avoid doing only the same thing repeatedly.

Memorable Quotes

• “You can be active, you can exercise, but your body’s still going to change…” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [10:27]
• “Functional muscle, that’s the term you should probably remember here. It’s the difference between muscle that shows and muscle that actually works when and where you need it.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [12:52]
• “Feeling weaker does not mean you’re doing anything wrong. Probably just means your body needs a different kind of support.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [15:32]

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Key Takeaways

• For Eye Health:
  • Prioritize a nutrient-rich diet focused on vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats.
  • Protect eyes from screens and UV light.
  • Choose the right eye drops and see your doctor if using them often.
  • Manage whole-body health and get regular eye exams.
• For Healthy Muscles as You Age:
  • Muscle strength and function are more important than mass.
  • Functional and varied training supports real-life strength.
  • Flexibility must be maintained alongside strength.
  • Keep your routines dynamic and do targeted strength work multiple times a week.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• “Every 20 minutes look away from your screen to a spot about 20 feet in front of you for 20 seconds…It can help reduce eye strain.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [03:40]
• “If you find yourself reaching for eye drops often, you might want to consider switching over to a preservative-free version…” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [04:50]
• “Functional muscle, that’s the term you should probably remember…It’s the difference between muscle that shows and muscle that actually works when and where you need it.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [12:52]
• “Variety is the good spice of life. Even when we think about our exercise program…” —Dr. Donald Dengel [14:53]
• “Feeling weaker does not mean you’re doing anything wrong. Probably just means your body needs a different kind of support.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta [15:32]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [00:20] — Listener Deb’s question on eye health
• [02:49] — Detailed nutrition and dietary advice
• [03:40] — 20-20-20 rule for screen-related eye strain
• [04:40] — Eye drop selection and precautions
• [06:09] — Sun protection for eyes
• [09:20] — Listener Ciro’s question on muscle mass vs. strength
• [10:38] — Muscle function vs. muscle mass explained
• [11:24] — Dr. Donald Dengel on real vs. gym strength
• [12:52] — Functional muscle and practical advice
• [14:53] — Importance of variety and consistency in exercise

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Episode Tone

Conversational, practical, and deeply empathetic, with expert insights and actionable advice tailored for listeners who want to stay healthy—no matter their age.

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Transcript

[A]

Hey there. Welcome to Paging Dr. Gupta. Thank you so much for joining us. Really appreciate it. As you know by now, this is the show where I get to hear from you and then answer your health questions. My producer Laying is with us today. Who do we have up first?

[B]

Hi, Sanjay. A listener named Deb Jones from Kentucky has a question about eye health. Here's what she wants to know.

[C]

Dr. Gupta, I just love your podcast and I learn something every time I listen. I've been on an eye healing journey. I've had four different surgeries on my eyes and just have a lot of anxiety about getting older. Any advice about how to protect our super peepers, as I like to call them, and keep them in the best shape that we can. Eye exercises, vitamins in general, drops, whatever. I would love to hear about protecting that precious resource.

[A]

Well, Deb, first of all, thank you for listening. I'm so glad you learned something every time you listen. That's the goal of this podcast. And you're asking a really important question. Deb, I think a lot of people worry about this, especially as we get older or if we've had other eye issues in the past. So your question's important, especially now that so many people are spending so much time looking at screens all day long for work, for entertainment, maybe both. So I've got a lot of thoughts about this. How to protect our eyes day in and day out, and also how to specifically pick the right eye drops. We'll get into this right after a short break.

[B]

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[A]

All right, Deb, back to Your question and Protecting our eyes first of all, it starts with the basics. A nutritious diet can help us keep our eyes as healthy as they can be for as long as they can be. You've probably heard of the Mediterranean diet. We're talking about leafy greens, colorful fruits, nuts, beans, fatty foods like fatty fish, salmon, all these foods can help support long term eye health, according to the American Academy of Ophthalmology. Specifically foods that are rich in vitamin C or E. So oranges, grapefruit, kiwifruit, almonds, avocados. Zinc is something else you should pay attention to. You'll find that in legumes such as beans and lentils, seeds, meat, certain seafoods, dairy and eggs, and then lutein and zeaxanthin, leafy green vegetables, kale, spinach, collard greens, Swiss chard, broccoli and asparagus. They'll have plenty of those two ingredients. Also, again, the colorful fruits you want, raspberries, peaches, mangoes, they are chock full of these eye healthy micronutrients which are found naturally in the retina, which is the light sensitive tissue lining the back of the eye. Now, when it comes to omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids, oily fish, salmon, trout, sardines, nuts, and oils like walnuts and sunflower oil, they are all natural sources of these fatty acids. This is important because studies have shown that people who follow the diet that I have just outlined have a significant reduction in the progression of late stage age related macular degeneration, something known as AMD that is the leading cause of vision loss in older adults. So start with the basics. Focus on those types of foods. Now if your eyes feel tired or strained from screens, you should try something known as the 202020 rule. Basically means every 20 minutes look away from your screen to a spot about 20ft in front of you for 20 seconds. Sounds pretty simple, but it can help reduce eye strain. Finally, let's talk about eye drops. There are prescription drops to treat particular conditions which you should be diligent about taking even if your eyes feel fine at the time. But many people use over the counter drops to easily ease common problems such as dry eyes, red eyes, itchy eyes. So think of it like this. There are four main types of over the counter eye drops. There are artificial tears which treat dry eyes, antihistamine eye drops to treat itching and redness from allergies. There's anti redness drops to reduce, you guessed it, eye redness. Those should only be used occasionally by the way, for a special event or photos don't use those on a daily basis. What happens is the vessels will dilate and become bigger, so the eyes may become even more red. And lastly, there are more intense nighttime versions of these drops. They are usually thicker and longer lasting and should be applied right before bed. Because of the sort of goopy or texture, they can blur your vision for a short time. All of these drops come in preservative and preservative free versions. So first of all, make sure you're using the right drop for the right purpose. And if you find yourself reaching for eye drops often, you might want to consider switching over to a preservative free version because chronic use of some eye drops with preservatives can actually start to break down the eyes protective coating and that can lead to even drier or more irritated eyes. Do keep in mind that symptoms like dryness, redness, itching, they can be temporary. So you're not always going to need eye drops. But if you're using the over the counter drops more than two or three times per day, you probably should visit an eye doctor and figure out if you have some sort of underlying condition that can be treated. Also, I should mention wearing sunglasses. I think this is an obvious one, but something we should really think about. They protect your eyes from the sun's ultraviolet rays. You know that UV radiation can damage the eye surface tissue as well as the cornea and lens and that can raise your risk of eye diseases and other problems. So when purchasing sunglasses, look for ones that block out 99 to 100% of UVA and UVB radiation. Also use protective eye covering if you're working with certain materials or if you're participating in certain sports. Get your health under control in general. Diabetes, high blood pressure, those things can be associated with eye complications as well. And get your regular eye exams that'll help you catch any problems sooner rather than later. Deb, I hope these tips can help put your super peepers on the road to good eye health for years to come. Thanks for calling in. All right, we're going to take a quick break here, but when we come back, I know a lot of you are hitting the gym and wondering what is the difference really between muscle strength and muscle mass and what is the correlation? Which should you prioritize? We'll talk about it right after the break.

[E]

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[A]

All right, we are back with paging Dr. Gupta Laing. Who do we have next?

[B]

Okay, Sangjae, our next question is from a 55 year old listener who asks about muscle mass versus muscle strength.

[G]

Hello, my name is Ciro. I stay very active in the gym and riding my bike in my neighborhood with lots of hills. And I also do decent leg workouts such as lunges and reverse. But I feel that I'm still weak. I was wondering if you could address that I did read or learned about the other day that muscle mass is different than muscle strength, which got my interest. And I just wanted to ask you about it to help me basically understand why even though I stayed very active, I still feel like I'm going on 74 years old even though I'm 55.

[A]

All right, thanks for your question, C Ro. It's a good one. A lot of people assume that if they're active or if they have muscle, they should automatically feel strong. But to your point, muscle mass and muscle strength are not the same thing. And the differences become even more apparent as we age. I'm in my mid-50s as well, and one thing that I've noticed is that things feel different as the years go by. And that's something a lot of people notice. You can be active, you can exercise, but your body's still going to change that feeling that you're talking about. You're staying active, but feeling weaker. It actually tracks. It makes sense. Feeling weaker isn't only about how much muscle you have. It's about how well that muscle works. Let me repeat that. It's not just about how much muscle you have, but how well that muscle works. Now, as you mentioned, Ciro, muscle mass is different than muscle strength. And anyone listening might be wondering, what's the difference? Well, if you have a lot of muscle mass, you'd assume that you're strong, right? But no, it's not actually all the same.

[H]

Think about A basketball player, they're going to leap off the ground and they're going to try to touch the basketball rim.

[A]

That's Dr. Donald Dengle. We reached out to him today to chat about this. He's a professor of exercise physiology at the University of Minnesota.

[H]

It takes so much force for you to leave the ground and touch that rim. And that force is actually coming from the muscles in the legs, right? So If I add 10 more kilos of muscle, will that translate to me getting to able to jump 4 more inches, or do I just get the same amount of force production and I still can only jump so high?

[A]

As you might guess, even with added muscle mass, you can only jump so high, and now you're not only having to kind of lift your body, you're now having to also lift that extra weight. So, point being, maybe 10 extra pounds of muscle mass. This doesn't help you jump any higher. You understanding this? That's the point. You now got 10 more pounds you have to lift off the ground as well. Dr. Dengel also pointed out that a better way to think about this is functional muscle, not just muscle strength or size. Here's how he put it.

[H]

For instance, bench pressing. Do I do a lot of bench pressing in my life? Not really, I don't. But do I ever lift things above my head? Sure, if it's on a shelf above me, if I'm taking it off the shelf. So maybe I should target exercises that look at that functional use of the muscle versus just pure size or pure strength, because I have to figure out what it is that I want to accomplish.

[A]

Functional muscle C ro that's the term you should probably remember here. It's the difference between muscle that shows and muscle that actually works when and where you need it. What is the use of muscle mass or having large muscles if you're not able to do the basic things your body needs to do every day? So the goal of lifting as we age should be building or maintaining strength, not muscle mass. So let's get that back to your question, Ciro, on why you might feel weak even though you work out quite a bit. Well, when we age, no matter how active we are, even if we strength train, there will be some natural decline in muscle strength. Exercising absolutely helps, I want to make that clear. But at the same time, it doesn't completely stop that decline. Think of it more as slowing the rate of the decline. And it's not only strength we lose with age, we lose flexibility as well if we don't work on it. Flexibility is so important. And it starts dropping early unless we actively maintain it. So not just about getting stronger, it's about staying flexible, too. And it's the kind of strength that we build that matters. We want movements that translate into real life, not just classic gym lifts. A lot of us grew up doing bench presses and bicep curls and triceps extensions. But the truth is, most of those things don't match the movements we actually do day to day. And I think that's part of the reason functional training has become such a big trend. Exercises that mimic real world movements and make your muscles work together, not in isolation. The goal isn't just lifting for the sake of lifting. It's lifting in a way that supports how your body actually moves. So with all that, what does actually help? Well, I think one golden rule. Switch up your routine. If you've been doing the same exercise for years, you're probably getting really good at those movements. But maybe not other things.

[H]

Variety is the good spice of life. Even when we think about our exercise program, whether it's, you know, lifting for strength or strength training or aerobic training,

[A]

muscle is incredibly adaptive. If you don't use it, your body's not going to keep. It takes up too much energy. But if you do use it, it gets stronger in the ways you need. So Dr. Dungel again suggests focusing on functional muscle training. Look up functional training online, or maybe ask a trainer at the gym to target the specific areas where you feel weak. Functional training is probably going to be different for one person compared to the next. And most importantly, be consistent. Not necessarily doing the same exercise over and over again, but doing something at least two to three times a week. Once a week isn't enough. You'll actually start to slip backwards. So make it a priority in whatever way you can. I know it can be hard to fit in. It's worth it. And ultimately, the goals are for you to feel better in the present and as you age, to live as independently as possible. Ciro, thank you for sending your question in. Feeling weaker does not mean you're doing anything wrong. Probably just means your body needs a different kind of support. Mix it up and shifting toward functional training can make a real difference in how strong and capable you feel every day, today and into the future. That's a wrap for today's episode. Thanks again to all of you for sending in your health questions. Remember, no question is too big or too small. Keep them coming. We listen to them. We might just answer your question on our next podcast. Reach out to us by recording a voice memo, email it to pagingdr.gupta.com that's pagingdrguptacnn.com or give us a call 470-396-0832 and leave a message. Thanks so much for listening.

[I]

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[A]

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