Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of irreversible vision loss among elderly people. What begins as a slow loss of central vision, over time, results in difficulty reading, driving and even recognizing the faces of loved ones. AMD not only makes doing everyday tasks impossible, it diminishes a person’s quality of life as well.
While there is no current cure for AMD, there are a number of things you can do to reduce your risk of developing the disease and experiencing vision loss.
Quit Smoking
Without question, the number one thing you can do to prevent vision loss is to stop smoking. If you’re not a smoker, feel free to skip to the next section. If you ARE a smoker, continue reading to learn how smoking often leads to AMD.
According to a report published in the British Medical Journal, smokers are up to four times
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Stop Eating Refined Carbs
A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition confirmed that a diet high in refined carbohydrates increases a person’s risk of developing macular degeneration. Highly refined foods like white breads, cookies, crackers, cereals (most processed foods, really) have a high glycemic index, causing a rapid increase in blood sugar and insulin release.
Focus on eating more low glycemic index foods like most fruits, brown rice, multi-grain and whole grain breads instead. In general, a good rule of thumb for optimum health is to eat more whole foods and less (or no) processed, prepackaged foods.
Control Your Blood Pressure
Data from the Framingham Heart and Eye Studies and Beaver Dam Eye Study indicate a significant link between hypertension and the development of advanced, potentially blinding forms of macular
Macular Degeneration is a disease of the eye that gradually causes loss of a person’s central vision. Approximately 1.75 million Americans suffer from vision loss associated with the disease (All About Vision 1). The leading cause of blindness in people over the age of 60, Macular Degeneration, exists in two types (National Eye Institute 1). Both the wet and dry versions of the disease have similarities in risk factors, but differ in symptoms and treatments.
This condition begins in the childhood or teenage years, from ages 8 to 14. When the eyeballs can't have light rays focused on the front of its retina, then, nearsightedness happens. Even if treatment cannot change the course of this condition, it is important to have this detected as early as possible. Many people with perfect vision may tend to take their eye health for granted. The eyes are our ticket to the visual world. Can you imagine yourself living in a world of darkness? It's very easy to neglect your eyes and here's a list on how you can keep it healthy. Six Ways in Having Healthy Eyes 1. Have a Consultation It's important to have your eye checked each year to see if you have any vision problems. Don't ignore headaches as they may be a sign of vision problems. Also, make sure you get the right type of eyeglasses or contact lenses since using the wrong one can affect your eye health. 2. Use Sunglasses We put sun block on our skin, but we forget to put protection on our eyes. Use sunglasses with UV protection since your eye sight can easily deteriorate with too much sun exposure. Darker lenses don't really guarantee better protection. You need to check the level of protection by getting a high category number on your sunnies ( 4 is the best ). Even if the sky is cloudy, wear your sunglasses. 3. Eat Healthy You are what you eat and there are foods
The research topic I will be introducing is Age-Related Macular Degeneration. This has been classified as a degenerative disorder that distresses the macula in one’s eye. AMD is unfortunately a common illness that individuals over 65 suffer from and that is a central cause vision loss. AMD doesn’t have a set disease pathway, in some individuals it advances slowly so that loss of vision does not arise for a long time. The disease can also advance much quicker and may lead to lack of vision in either or both eyes. The disease begins a blurry area near the center of one’s vision which grows larger and larger possibly causing a blank space in the eye (Boyd, 2013). Research is being done on AMD because it is a prevalent illness and has extreme consequences.
Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) is one of such currently untreatable causes of blindness. RP, along with Age Related Macular Degeneration (AMD) are amongst the more frequent causes of blindness in the developed world (Greenwald 2009), while RP itself is the leading cause of inherited blindness (Palanker 2004).
Visual impairment is a state wherein an individual experiences difficulty in seeing or not being able to see anything physical presented to them. According to Mandal, MD (2013) It is a state where a visually impaired person’s eyesight cannot be corrected back to a “normal level”. Visual impairment is often associated with old age. In Europe, an estimated 15.5 million people have visual impairment and in seven countries in Europe, about 50% of blindness is caused by age-related macular degeneration. (Dibb,
Macular Degeneration is a disease that affects the retina of the eye. The retina is a layer in the back of the eye that helps us to see. It is also the lining of the eye that helps us respond to light. However, when having macular degeneration there are major changes in a person's central vision. The disease causes central images to appear blurred and then dark spots may begin to appear that get larger and larger. It may also be very hard to see straight lines as Macular Degeneration may cause them to be curved. When having this disease color may appear to be darker and less vivid than normal.
Certain foods are heavy on eyesight empowering nutrients, such as spinach, kale, dark berries, walnuts,
The damage caused by glaucoma can't be reversed. But treatment and regular checkups can help slow or prevent vision loss. The goal of glaucoma treatment is to lower pressure in your eye. Depending on your situation, your options may include eye drops, laser treatment or surgery.
Imagine a world in which the only way to see was to reach your fingers out and feel. There would be no color to amaze you, no faces to distinguish between, and no facial expressions or body language to clue you in. Blindness is a serious thing that isn’t thought about very often. Glaucoma is a genetic disease that can cause blindness. It affects both old and young people worldwide. While it doesn’t decrease life expectancy, it is a disease that makes it hard or impossible to see that bright, colorful world.
Macular degeneration is the leading cause of sight loss in the United Kingdom. It is usually age related, occurring in 1 in 10 people over 65. In macular degeneration, the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) at the back of the macula in the eye, which supports the rod and cone cells vital to central vision, stops functioning. This results in the death of rod and cone cells, resulting in the loss of central vision. There are two types of macular degeneration: wet, and dry. Dry macular degeneration is the most common type and typically causes central vision loss over several months or years. Wet macular degeneration is rare, causing central vision loss in several days or weeks.
As much as possible, eat carbohydrates with a low glycemic index (This list includes most fiuits and vegetables).
There are several different techniques for diagnosing AMD and various signs that sufferers of the condition present to help with the diagnosis process by clinicians. Some of these signs may include sudden or progressive decreased vision which cannot be improved with optic correction, a central filed defect, metamorphopsia or difficulty in simple activities including watching television and recognising people. (14) Metamorphopsia is a type of vision distortion where upon viewing a grid of straight lines, a sufferer would see the lines as wavy and some parts of the grid as blank, therefore a suitable technique for identifying metamorphopsia is the Amsler grid. (25) Another similar but slightly more advanced technique for
Really the cause of Macular Degeneration is unknown. Recently researchers have discovered that a group of genes called ABCR contribute to the disease. When someone has these genes the likeliness of this person to form Macular Degeneration increases by 30 percent. In most situations Macular Degeneration is
Macular thickness is a reliable surrogate marker for diagnosing and evaluating the efficacy of treatment of various ocular diseases involving macular changes, such as macular edema. Nussenblatt et al were able to demonstrate that the degree of macular thickening, rather than the presence of macular edema, is significantly correlated with visual acuity.
Right now, although there is no way to prevent glaucoma, there are many successful treatments available to prevent the blindness caused by glaucoma. Because the gradual vision loss of chronic glaucoma may not be noticed until it is too late, regular eye examinations, dilated exams of the optic nerve, and screening tests of the visual field are essential for all persons aged 40 and older, especially is your family has a history of glaucoma.