Rudrani Banik, M.D is a board-certified ophthalmologist and fellowship-trained neuro-ophthalmologist with additional training in Functional Medicine.
She completed her B.A./M.D. as part of the prestigious combined eight-year Program in Liberal Medical Education at Brown University in Rhode Island. Dr. Banik then did her internship at Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami, followed by Ophthalmology Residency at University of California, Irvine. She then completed a Neuro-Ophthalmology Fellowship under Dr. Neil Miller at Wilmer Eye Institute/Johns Hopkins.
After training, Dr. Banik joined the full-time faculty at Albert Einstein College of Medicine/ Montefiore Medical Center in New York, after which she became Program Director in Ophthalmology at Bronx Lebanon Hospital Center. She was then recruited to New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai to serve as faculty and run the clinical trials in Neuro Ophthalmology. She worked there full-time until 2017, when she branched out to open her own practice in Manhattan.
She maintains an academic appointment at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai as Associate Professor of Ophthalmology, where she actively teaches and supervises residents, fellows, and medical students. She also serves as Principal Investigator for the clinical trials in Neuro-Ophthalmology. She has published over 40 peer-reviewed articles and has been a speaker at both national and international meetings. Dr. Banik is a fellow of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) and the North American Neuro-Ophthalmology Society (NANOS). She also serves on the American Board of Ophthalmology’s Exam Development Committee, a role she enjoys through which she helps maintain the standards of board certification in ophthalmology.
In 2021, Dr. Banik completed additional certification in functional medicine through the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM). Using this training, Dr. Banik focuses on the root cause of eye and neuro-ophthalmic diseases, and uses integrative strategies for conditions such as thyroid eye disease, optic neuritis, non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy, macular degeneration, cataract, dry eye, glaucoma, migraine, and autoimmune diseases of the visual system.
Her integrative treatments are based on nutrition, botanicals, lifestyle modification, essential oils, and supplements, along with traditional Western medical and surgical approaches. Dr. Banik believes that this combination provides the best of both worlds to her patients, with a more holistic approach to their vision health.
In April 2023, Dr. Banik published her first book, “Beyond Carrots – Best Foods For Eye Health A to Z,” all about ocular nutrition. In her book, she highlights the 30+ nutrients needed for healthy vision – beyond beta carotene – and the 40 plant-based foods that are richest in these nutrients – beyond carrots. She also has a companion cookbook called “Dr. Rani’s Plant-Based Visionary Kitchen,” with over 130 delicious and nutritious recipes curated to support eye health. Both books are available on Amazon in print and digital versions.
Dr. Banik’s mission is to educate both her colleagues in the eye care world, as well as the public, about how vision health can be promoted using the power of healthy nutrition and lifestyle choices. Dr. Banik is frequently featured as an expert in the media and has been interviewed on Good Morning America, CBS, NBC, ABC, The New York Times, The Today Show Online, The Washington Post, MindBodyGreen, and Fox, amongst many others. She has been a guest expert on over 80 podcasts. Dr. Banik has been voted by her peers as Castle Connolly Top Doctor and New York Magazine’s Best Doctor in Ophthalmology every year since 2017.
Dr. Banik lives and works in New York City, which she believes is the best city in the world. She enjoys traveling the world, dancing salsa and classical Indian, cooking, and spending quality time with her family and friends. You can also find Dr. Banik on social media – Instagram (@dr.ranibanik), Facebook (EnVision Health), and YouTube (@dr.ranibanik) – where she loves to educate and share on topics ranging from neuro-ophthalmology to ocular nutrition to migraine.
