Diabetes and eye care
Posted by admin | Filed under Austin Eye Care
Although some people are born pre-disposed to having vision problems later in life, there are also some medical conditions that can create or exacerbate current vision problems. One of those medical conditions is diabetes. Diabetes is a condition that creates high levels of blood sugar in a person’s body, because their body does not properly regulate insulin within the body. With the condition can come a whole host of issues including vision problems, poor circulation which can lead to loss of a limb, cardiovascular disease, and renal failure. Lasik surgery is in high demand to help correct these vision problems.
Vision problems occur because unregulated blood sugar can cause blurry vision. Also, those with diabetes can develop diabetic retinopathy which is damage to the retina of the eye caused by complications of diabetes. It can eventually lead to blindness. It can effect up to 80% of people who have had diabetes for 10 years or longer. Lens implants may be necessary if this problem persists.
Even though this may sound scary, there are ways to prevent and reduce the severity of eye problems in people with diabetes. One of the easiest ways is with vigilant eye care screenings. What you could have once put off as an unnecessary eye check-up has now become crucial to the survival of your current way of life. To improve your eyes get more information about glaucoma.
When you go for your annual eye check-up, you should see an optometrist or an ophthalmologist. This is crucial, because opticians are not trained to detect the signs of retinopathy. If you do have the condition, you will need to see an ophthalmologist, because only they can treat the disease. Make sure your practitioner knows that you have diabetes so that they are aware of the need to monitor your vision more closely. Cataract screening will be necessary so be sure to talk about it with your provider.
If you do have eye disease, you will likely need to have more frequent visits so that your ophthalmologist can keep a close eye on the progression of the disease. There is a good chance that visits to an ophthalmologist for this condition may be covered under your medical insurance, even if you do not have a vision plan. This is because it is considered a medical condition, rather than routine eye care. A corneal transplant may be needed down the road.
Aside from regular visits to your eye care professional, in order to maintain good eye health, you also need to keep your blood sugar levels under control, which is of course something you should be doing anyway. You also need to keep your blood pressure under control with diet and exercise and stop smoking if you smoke.
Some signs of diabetes-related eye issues that you should be on the look-out for are seeing double, pain in one or both eyes, redness in eyes that doesn’t go away, seeing spots, reduction in peripheral vision, and trouble reading signs or books. Macular degeneration is a very serious and threatening condition.
Even though you know what to do to live a healthy life with diabetes, it can be difficult to stay on track. Eye disease, can lead to blindness, use that as a motivator to stay on track with your eating and exercise. Eating a healthy diet in conjunction with lasik surgery opens up a new way of life.
About the Author: Mark Masters has authored may pieces on the eye care & surgery industry and enjoys keeping his readers up to date in this field
