Eye Health: What we can learn from J.S. Bach

Did you know that poor eye health had a direct hand in J.S. Bach's untimely death? Here's what we can learn from the great master outside of music:

Let's begin with a story about Johann Sebastian Bach...but not just another story about his life as a great musician and composer. Let's talk about his health.

Focus at a young age

Refractive Errors (such as myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism) are the most common eye problems that occur in the U.S, according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC).

We begin this story from the perspective of Johann Sebastian Bach as a young boy. Born into a musical family in the small town of Eisenach, Germany, Bach was the youngest of eight children, and learned to play the violin from his father Johann Ambrosius. After the unfortunate loss of both of his parents, Bach found himself an orphan at age 10. His older brother, Johann Christoph, took him in. Even though his older brother taught him to play organ, he often discourage his use of manuscript paper. Bach, however, having great ambitions to be a composer, stayed up late to be out of his brother's watchful eye, and taught himself how to compose by copying famous composers' works by moonlight. No doubt those experiences had an impact both on the musical prowess and eye health of the young Bach.

Centuries later, research has found that the repetitive "near work" and extensive reading could have caused a condition known as myopia, which would have been more moderate at first, given his ability to play organ and multiple other instruments that would have required good vision greater than 50cm away.(https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaophthalmology/fullarticle/417322).

Fun Fact: there is no biographical evidence that Bach ever wore spectacles.

Generally speaking, Bach was a relatively healthy person by all accounts except for his worsening eye condition in his later years. By that fateful last year of his life, Bach's eyesight got so bad he sought out surgery as a solution with the encouragement of his close confidantes.

A Surgery Gone Wrong

Bach employed the traveling surgeon, Sir John Taylor who happened to also be in Leipzig at the time. Unfortunately, Sir John Taylor was a massive con artist. Having been trained in a new technique called "couching," he had started his practice in Switzerland where he operated on, and, in the process, blinded hundreds of patients. Bach had two procedures done, with the second one leading to blindness followed months later by a stroke. Taylor also operated on the famous Messiah composer, George Frederic Handel, who also passed away months after a surgery from him. This crooked surgeon even went so far as to claim both surgeries a success in the local papers!!

(For more of the gory details related to Bach's eye health and fateful surgeries, visit https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaophthalmology/fullarticle/417322.)

So what can we learn from these biographical accounts, and a rather gruesome story of surgery gone wrong? Was there anything Bach could have done to help his vision?

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Eye Health Starts with Nutrition

While we may never know the answers to those questions, one thing we know for sure: there have been great advancements in the field of eye health and nutrition since the 18th century. It should come as no surprise that, like many other ailments, promoting good health with your eyes starts with what you eat. As a musician, even if you're not performing, it is easy to put in many hours of near work without blinking an eye (pun intentional! :). Everything from reading sheet music, preparing sheet music for lessons or classes, studying sheet music or scores for your own personal practice or upcoming gigs, or a combination of all of the above contributes to countless hours of near work everyday. With all that heavy lifting your eyes do on a daily basis, there are basic nutrients that can easily be included in your diet or daily supplements.

Here are some of those top nutrients specifically for eye health:

• Vitamin A

• Lutein

• Zeaxanthin

• Omegas 3 and 6

• Vitamin C

• Vitamin E

• Zinc

• Evening primrose and starflower oil

• Gamma Linolenic Acid

Common foods with these nutrients are green veggies like spinach, broccoli, asparagus, brussel sprouts, and lettuce. Other veggies like carrots, squash, and pumpkin are also great sources of these nutrients. I personally have found that at times vegetables are hard to come by whether I am traveling, or between rehearsals and teaching. I find that a great alternative is finding these in a supplement form you can trust. For recommendations, you can contact me at instrumentallyhealthy@gmail.com.