Your Vision is very important

Millions of people experience vision problems each year. Some of these problems even cause permanent loss of vision and blindness. We are at risk of having eye diseases that cause loss of vision. But there are some steps that you can take to protect your vision.

How are your eyes today?

Almost everyone will experience some type of eye condition in their lifetime. For example, your eyes can be severely irritated or red. Perhaps your eyes could even be highly sensitive to light due to certain medication you are taking. Additionally, several medical procedures, such as cataract surgery may increase sensitivity to glare.

As part of the care of your visual health for today-and for the future-it is important you understand the various conditions that can affect your eyes.

The care of your visual health includes proper ways to treat these disorders, when to consider an appropriate solution such as photochromic lenses, and when to consult your eyecare professional.

In general, in order to help maintain your visual health and reduce the risk of damaging your eyes, you should consider integrating into your daily life appropriate methods of care for your precious eyes:

1. Visit your eyecare professional on a regular basis
2. Eat a balanced diet, and take vitamin supplements if they are recommended by a health professional
3. Don't smoke
4. Exercise regularly like walking or attending a gym
5. Rest your eyes and blink frequently when you are reading, working on a computer for long periods of time, or watching television
6. Wear protective eyewear for sports and occupational hazards
7. Choose eyeglasses for daily use that help protect your eyes against ultraviolet rays, excessive light and glare. Photochromie lenses are an excellent solution as they provide various benefits:
8. Photochromic lenses automatically block 100% of UVA and UVB rays, while reducing painful and discomforting glare
9. Photochromic lenses change from clear indoors to as dark as sunglasses in the presence of ultraviolet light
10. Photochromic lenses help to diminish eye strain and fatigue by helping you distinguish contrast more easily
11. Consider having a second pair of glasses, for example, for driving, work at a computer or for outdoor sports

The truth about ultraviolet rays: We are facing an invisible enemy!

Every day-whether sunny or cloudy or in-between, and regardless of the season-we are exposed to ultraviolet radiation from the sun. Although we may not visibly notice the UV rays, they are always present and invisible in all lighting conditions.

It is important to understand the damaging effects ultraviolet light can have on your vision, as well as the steps that you can take to protect your eyes. This is very important as the damage ultraviolet rays cause to your vision is cumulative.

As you learn more about the dangers posed by the exposure to ultraviolet rays, take the time to understand the simple steps you can take each day to help reduce the risk of ultraviolet damage. These steps will help you to improve your eyesight today and promote lifelong healthy sight.

The eye has many different parts that help you see. First, light passes through the cornea, the transparent surface that covers the front part of the eye. The cornea bends, or refracts, the light that enters the eye. Then the iris (the colored part of the eye) regulates the size of the pupil, the opening that controls the amount of light that enters the eye. Behind the pupil is the lens, which is the clear lens of the eye. The light reaches the lens which further focuses the image onto the retina. The retina is a thin delicate tissue, sensitive to light, which contains special photoreceptor cells that convert the light into electrical signals. These electrical signals are processed further and then travel from the retina to the brain through the optic nerve, made up of more than a million nerve fibers. Our brain helps us "see"; the eyes collect the visual information and then this complex process begins.

Complete Eye Exam

Getting a complete eye exam on a regular basis can help prevent loss of vision. Early detection of eye conditions and timely treatment can help save your vision. In many cases, a complete eye exam can be the only way to detect several eye conditions that can lead to eventual blindness.

WHAT IS A COMPLETE EYE EXAM?

A complete eye exam includes:

Examination with dilated pupils:

The eyecare professional puts drops in your eyes to expand or widen the pupils and then looks through a special magnifying lens to check for cataract and retinal problems in the eye (such as diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration or optic nerve damage). This particular eye examination also allows the eye doctor to see if there is any damage to the optic nerve. If damage to the optic nerve is found, then the eye disease, glaucoma, is diagnosed. After this examination, it is common for you to find your vision blurred for several hours and to experience increased sensitivity to light.

Tonometry:

This test helps to detect glaucoma by measuring the internal pressure of the eye. The eyecare professional may conduct a test where a small puff of air is carefully administered toward the front of each eye. An alternative is to use a pressure sensitive probe which can be applied next to or against the eye. Your doctor may apply drops to numb the eye. If your eye shows signs of increased pressure, this can also be a sign of glaucoma.

Visual field test:

This test measures your lateral or peripheral vision (your side vision). It is useful for diagnosing conditions such as glaucoma and for neurologic problems (stroke, brain tumors).

Test of visual acuity:

This test contains a table of letters with distinct sizes that measures the visual field or capacity to see according to the established normality of the general population.

Common Visual Problems:

Refraction disorders like myopia, hyperopia, presbyopia, and astigmatism are very common eye problems. Most people have one or more of them, and generally they are easily corrected with eyeglasses or contact lenses.

MYOPIA (nearsightedness)

If you have myopia, you can see objects that are near well, but have trouble seeing distant objects. Myopia occurs when the globe of the eye is too long. Myopia can occur in many degrees, from slight to extreme. The more myopic you are, the more blurred your distant vision becomes, and objects will have to be closer so that you can see them clearly.

PRESBYOPIA

If you have presbyopia, your eyes have lost the ability to focus up close, and naturally happens as you age. Most people are between 40 and 50 years old when they first realize they have lost their ability to see objects up close or to read something close to their eyes. The print in the telephone directory may become "too small" to be readable. You have to hold the newspaper at a farther distance to see clearly. At the same time, your ability to focus on distant objects remains the same.

ASTIGMATISM

If you have astigmatism, you have a common imperfection where you cannot focus clearly. This happens when the shape of the cornea is not perfectly round, but rather more oval. The cornea has an important function in how the eye focuses. Astigmatism rarely appears alone. It almost always appears together with myopia or hyperopia.

Eye Conditions

There are many conditions and eye problems that can affect your vision. Listed below are some of the more common eye conditions; however, this is not intended to replace the authorized recommendations made by your eyecare professional.

What is glaucoma?

An eye condition that damages the optic nerve resulting in progressive loss of peripheral vision that may not be obvious until it becomes severe enough to affect the straight ahead vision. Although people think of glaucoma as an increased pressure in the eye, it does not cause a feeling of pressure or any pain; that's why it is called a silent disease. If glaucoma is diagnosed and treated early, you can protect your eyes from serious loss of vision. You can have glaucoma in one or in one or both eyes. Usually in both eyes.

Who is more likely to develop glaucoma?

Though anyone can develop glaucoma, you have a greater risk if you are part of any of these groups:

- Any person over the age of 60, especially those who are of Mexican descent

- Cataracts

- People with a family history of glaucoma

What causes glaucoma?

There are many factors involved in glaucoma. The internal pressure of the eye is only one of these.

Not all people who have an increased pressure in their eye will develop glaucoma. Some optic nerves can tolerate a higher pressure than others. Developing glaucoma depends on the eye pressure that the optic nerve can withhold without sustaining damage. The level of toleration differs from person-to-person; however, glaucoma can also develop without an increase in the eye pressure. Therefore, it is very important to get a complete eye exam so your doctor can determine normal pressure level for your eyes.

What are the symptoms of glaucoma?

In the beginning, there are no symptoms and your vision remains normal without any pain. If the disease advances without treatment, you will gradually begin to lose your peripheral vision. In other words, you will be able to see the objects directly in front of you very well, but not those objects that are found in your peripheral view (side vision). It may seem as if you are looking through a tunnel. With time, your vision begins to decrease as your direct or central vision is completely lost.

How can glaucoma be treated?

Although open-angle glaucoma cannot be cured, generally it can be controlled. The most common treatments are medicines (usually eye drops), laser therapy, and surgery and other types of surgery.

With timely treatment you can protect your eyes from serious loss of vision.

What are cataracts?

Cataracts occur when the clear lens of the eye becomes cloudy. The lens of the eye is found behind the iris and the pupil, and focuses the light towards the back of the eye to the retina. The retina then converts the light to nerve signals and sends them to the brain. In order to produce a precise image, the lens must stay transparent. Cataracts can appear in one or both eyes.

Who is most likely to develop this disease?

If you are age 60 or older, or if you have diabetes, you run a higher risk of developing cataracts. Injuries to the eye and the long term use of medicines (especially steroids) can lead to cataracts.

How can it be treated?

Cataracts can be treated with surgery. During the operation, the doctor removes the opaque lens and, in most cases, replaces it with a plastic transparent lens. This operation has a high level of success in restoring vision that has once been lost due to cataracts.

If you are age 60 or older, or if you have diabetes, you run a higher risk of developing cataracts.

What is age-related macular degeneration?

It is a common disease that is associated with age and affects the central vision. If you have age-related macular degeneration, you may have difficulty reading, driving a car or carrying out tasks that require seeing straight ahead. Age-related macular degeneration affects the macula, the small and sensitive part of the retina that gives us sharp central vision.

Who is most likely to develop this disease?

You run a higher risk of developing age-related macular degeneration if you are more than 60 years old. In some cases of age-related macular degeneration the disease progresses gradually. In other cases, the disease develops rapidly and causes a complete loss of vision in one or both eyes.

How can it be treated?

Studies have shown that taking certain vitamins and minerals can help prevent or delay the progress of age-related macular degeneration in people who do have the disease.

If you have age-related macular degeneration, you may have difficulty reading, driving a car or carrying out tasks that require seeing straight ahead.

What is diabetic retinopathy?

It is caused by changes in the blood vessels of the retina. In some cases, the blood vessels of the retina can become inflamed and leak internal fluid. In other cases, new blood vessels, which become abnormal, can grow on the surface of the retina. These changes can result in loss of vision or blindness. Almost half of the people with diabetes will develop some degree of diabetic retinopathy during their lifetime.

What are the symptoms?

Often there are no symptoms at the beginning of the disease, nor is there any pain. Your vision may not change until the disease is advanced.

Blurred vision can occur when the macula-the part of the retina that provides central clear vision-becomes inflamed and swollen due to the accumulation of the fluid. This condition is known as macular edema. If new blood vessels grow on the retina, they can bleed inside the eye blocking your vision. Even in the most advanced cases, the disease can progress for a long time without any symptoms at all. For this reason it is very important you get an eye exam at least once a year.

Can diabetic retinopathy be treated?

Yes. It is possible to treat it using laser surgery and other types of surgery. Nonetheless, when you do receive treatment, the vision you have already lost cannot be always restored. Therefore, the best way to prevent loss of vision is early detection and proper treatment of diabetic retinopathy.

Can diabetic retinopathy be prevented?

Not completely, but your risk can be reduced. If you control your diabetes (the sugar levels in your blood), you can delay the onset and advance of diabetic retinopathy and reduce the need for treatment.

Other studies have shown that controlling high blood pressure and cholesterol can reduce the risk of vision loss. Control of these factors will also help your general health, which will help you protect your vision.