How Your Emotions and Microbiome Affect Longevity and Eyesight Artwork

Natural Eye Care with Dr. Marc Grossman, Holistic Optometrist

Leading Holistic Optometrist Dr. Marc R. Grossman, O.D., L.Ac. hosts the Natural Eye Care Podcast: approaches to vision problems, eye health, and overall health backed by research and his 40+ years of experience with patients. Most eye diseases strike seniors. Find out how lifestyle, diet, and nutrition can help maintain healthy vision and even improve eyesight. An Holistic Eye Doctor is dedicated to helping people with such conditions ranging from myopia and dry eyes to potentially vision-threatening diseases like macular degeneration and glaucoma. Dr. Grossman's podcasts cover a multi-disciplinary approach including nutrition, eye exercises, lifestyle changes, and Chinese Medicine. Dr. Grossman founded the Rye Learning Center in 1980, a multidisciplinary center for learning problems, in 1996 co-founded Integral Health Associates in New Paltz, New York, and in 1999 co-founded Natural Eye Care, Inc. His background includes degrees in Optometry, Biology, Physical Education and Learning Disabilities, coupled with yoga, bioenergetics, nutrition, Chinese medicine and acupuncture, the Alexander technique and Feldenkrais. He is co-author of half a dozen books on vision, including "Natural Eye Care: Your Guide to Health Vision and Healing" in 2019. Dr. Grossman takes an integrated approach to vision and its influence on the body, mind, and spirit. His lectures and private consultations are in high demand.

All Episodes

Natural Eye Care with Dr. Marc Grossman, Holistic Optometrist

How Your Emotions and Microbiome Affect Longevity and Eyesight

November 13, 2025 • Dr. Marc R Grossman, OD, L.Ac. • Season 6 • Episode 16

In this episode, Dr. Marc Grossman connects longevity to eye health by linking emotions, circulation, and the gut–brain–eye axis. He shares practical steps to protect vision as you age. Anger management, the liver meridian’s role, and microbiome balance form the backbone of a plan you can start today.

positive emotions supporting a longer health span and clearer sight
the damaging effects of dysregulated anger on the endothelium and eye pressure
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the liver meridian is linked to circulation, tendons, nails, and the eyes
common vision issues tied to liver imbalance and stress
gut–brain–eye axis shaping inflammation and ocular surface
diet, post-meal walks, yoga and qigong for regulation
simple tools like castor oil packs and screen breaks
practical nutrients and habits

For more information, visit naturaleycare.com and drgrossman2020.com
Our email address is info@naturaleycare.com

SPEAKER_01: 0:04

This is the Natural Eye Care Podcast, hosted by leading holistic optometrist Dr. Mark R. Grossman. Senior citizens are at the highest risk of developing macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts, dry eye, and more. The Natural Eye Care Podcast provides complementary and natural approaches to vision problems, eye health, and overall health. Find out how lifestyle, diet, and nutrition can help maintain healthy vision and even improve eyesight. Dr. Grossman has degrees in optometry, biology, physical education, and learning disabilities. He is a New York State licensed acupuncturist. With 40 years of experience, he has co-authored the book Natural Eye Care: Your Guide to Healthy Vision and Healing. Dr. Grossman.

SPEAKER_00: 0:52

And today we're going to talk about longevity. That's right, longevity. In fact, I teach a course at Krapallo Yoga Center with a Dr. Bannock on Sing Forever. So let's talk about longevity, keeping your body, mind, and vision healthy longer. Living a long, healthy life is not just about genetics or good luck. It's about understanding how your daily choices, emotions, and even your gut health can influence your overall well-being. Modern science and ancient wisdom both highlight the deep connections between the mind, body, and vision. Let's explore how emotions like anger, the health of your gut, and the balance of your body systems all play a crucial role in supporting longevity and protecting your eyesight. Whether you're aiming to stay sharp, energetic, and clear-sighted as you age, or simply want to take a more holistic approach to your health, you will find practical insights and tips to help you thrive for years to come. Positive emotions increase longevity. Emotional disturbances can impact eye health by altering the function of the eye muscles, disrupting circulation and energy pathways, and affecting the nervous system. This can lead to symptoms such as blurry vision, eye fatigue, ocular migraines, and elevated eye pressure. Anger, when in balance, supports motivation and energy. Anger is linked to high optimism, positive expectations, and experiences of high coping potential. It is associated with perceived task ease as compared with sadness, which is associated with greater perceived task difficulty. But in traditional Chinese medicine, keeping one's emotion in balance supports long-term health. Here, the emotion anger, when in balance, can provide energy and support motivation, but when out of balance, then it can have the opposite results in disturbing healthy social relationships and can result in a wide range of health issues, including high blood pressure, stomach and digestive issues, poor sleeping, migraine headaches, and glaucoma. In fact, a study from the American Heart Association reveals that even a short burst of anger may rise the risk of heart attack and stroke. This happens by disrupting blood flow and harming the vascular endothelium, which is the thin single cell layer lining the interior of the arteries, veins, and capillaries. The endothelium functions not only as a protective barrier, but also plays a vital role in metabolic, hormonal, and immune system processes. Another study focusing on men experiencing angry feelings and expressing them aggressively over 20 years were related to an increased risk of dying from cardiovascular disease and cancer. In traditional Chinese medicine, the liver meridians closely link to eye health as it opens to the eyes and governs the flow of energy and circulation throughout the body. And guess what? Anger is the primary emotion tied to the liver. The liver is responsible for storing blood, regulating blood volume, maintaining muscle and tendon health, and keeping healthy nails. When you have imbalances in the liver meridian, it can relate to myopia, glaucoma, eye floaters, macular degeneration, photophobia, which is light sensitivity, poor night vision. So all these can be imbalances in the liver meridian. Our revision herbal formula is based on the Chinese formula relax wanderer, which helps with keeping the liver meridian healthy. Now, what about the anger in the gut microbiome? Anger and gut imbalances are linked through the gut brain axis, where anger triggers the fight or flight response, flooding the body with stress hormones. And what does that do? It slows digestion, increases gut sensitivity, and alters the gut microbiome. And you can get symptoms of bloating, diarrhea, and cramps. Gut imbalances and vision issues are increasingly linked to several vision problems on the gut eye axis. By influencing the immune system and systemic inflammation, imbalances in the gut microbiome can play a significant role in dry eyes, macular degeneration, glaucoma, and styes. It's really important to watch what you eat, take care of your gut, even just like doing castor oil packs on your belly and on your liver. These are all good things you can do because you need to take care of your gut-brain relationship, your gut-eye relationship, deal with emotions, lifestyle considerations, eat a healthy diet, regular exercise, take breaks to stretch and relax, and after lunch, take a nice walk. It'll help with blood sugar levels. Try yoga qigung. Visit us at naturaley care.com for other ideas on how to keep your precious gift of sight.

SPEAKER_01: 6:27

For more information, visit naturaleycare.com and drgrossman2020.com. Our email address is info at naturaleycare.com. If you have any questions, call us 845-475-4158. And if you don't already subscribe to this podcast, please subscribe and review us.