Diabetic Retinopathy: Risks

Increasing Risk

The Centers for Disease Control has recently turned its attention to the increasing rates of diabetic retinopathy, a complication of diabetes in which the blood vessels of the eyes are damaged resulting in potential vision loss. The study, published in Journal of the American Medical Association suggests that those with diabetes require more comprehensive eye care. 31.6% men and 25.7% of women over age 40 who have diabetes are estimated to have diabetic retinopathy.

Study authors intend their findings to guide policy makers as they oversee the country’s eye care services and rehabilitation for the estimated 8% of the U.S. population with diabetes.

Source: WebMD.com

Bright Light Before Bedtime

Time spent in bright artificial light before bedtime has been linked to heightened blood pressure and an increased diabetes risk.

Researchers have found that nighttime exposure to light can disrupt melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep cycles as well as blood pressure.  The study shows that being in bright light opposed to dim light caused the body to produce less melatonin.  Participants who were exposed to bright light during typical sleep hours produced an average of 50% less melatonin.

According to a news release from the Endocrine Society: “Given that chronic light suppression of melatonin has been hypothesized to increase relative risk for some types of cancer and that melatonin receptor genes have been linked to type 2 diabetes, our findings could have important health implications for shift workers who are exposed to indoor light at night over the course of many years,” says study author Joshua Gooley.

Source: https://www.healthfinder.gov

Published: Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism

Of course, trying to read or work on the computer in low light situations can contribute to eye disease can harm your vision. Since sleep is important to eye health and health in general and is so key to keeping those dark circles away, maybe it is time to consider becoming a morning person!

Type II Diabetes Patients at Risk for Dry Eye Syndrome

A new study shows that early diagnosis and treatment of dry eye syndrome in diabetic patients may help prevent problems such as scarring and perforation of the cornea and secondary bacterial infection.

Scientists at the Yazd Diabetes Research Center evaluated 199 type 2 diabetic patients for dry eye syndrome and other factors.  Of the 199 subjects, 108 patients (54.3%) were found to suffer from dry eye syndrome.

Although dry eye syndrome was more common in older and female patients, this association was not significant.  However, researchers did find a significant association between dry eye syndrome and duration of diabetes.   Researchers also noted that dry eye syndrome was more frequent in diabetic patients with diabetic retinopathy.

Study authors concluded that dry eye syndrome in diabetic patients may be a contributor for a variety of corneal complications including superficial punctuate keratopathy, trophic ulceration, and persistent epithelial defect.   The authors recommended that examination for dry eye should be an integral part of the assessment of diabetic eye disease.

Learn more about natural relief for dry eyes

Published:  Prevalence of dry eye syndrome and diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetic patients, Manaviat, et al, BMC Ophthalmology 2008, 8:10doi:10.1186/1471-2415-8-10.

 

Lipoic Acid Might Help Cataracts Patients

Studies have shown beneficial effects of lipoic acid treatment on cataracts in rats. It may be of therapeutic use in preventing human cataracts and their associated complications. Lipoic acid has also been used to treat glaucoma.

Lipoic acid, also known as alpha-lipoic acid, is a sulfur-containing fatty acid. It is found inside every cell of the body, where it helps generate the energy that keeps us alive and functioning. Lipoic acid is a key part of the metabolic machinery that turns glucose (blood sugar) into energy for the body’s needs.

Lipoic acid is an antioxidant, which means that it neutralizes naturally occurring but harmful chemicals known as free radicals. Unlike other antioxidants, which work only in water or fatty tissues, lipoic acid is unusual in that it functions in both water and fat. By comparison, vitamin E works only in fat and vitamin C works only in water. This gives lipoic acid an unusually broad spectrum of antioxidant action.

Source: HealthLibrary

For more research on cataracts, please visit our Research Pages.

Green Laser Pointers Can Cause Eye Damage

A new study by the National Institute of Standards and Technology shows that inexpensive green laser pointers can damage the retina.  In a test of several models that were advertised to have a power output of 10 milliwatts, a number of them emitted more infrared light than indicated at levels that are harmful to the eyes. Inexpensive models like those tested lack a filter that can cut down on the unsafe infrared emissions.  More expensive devices include this simple filter.

As reported in ScienceDaily.com, “owners of the devices should never point the lasers at the eyes or aim them at surfaces such as windows, which can reflect infrared light back to the user — a particularly subtle hazard because many modern energy-saving windows have coatings designed specifically to reflect infrared.”

Source: NIST

New Discovery May Lead to Better Eye Disease Screening

Prediction Model

Researchers from Tufts have created a predictive method to identify one’s risk for development of macular degeneration (AMD) based on data gathered from 1,446 subjects in the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS).  The study evaluates  ocular, genetic, and environmental information and the effectiveness of  predictive methods of identifying AMD and AMD risk.

Researchers looked at gender, age, level of education, whether participants smoked and for how long/much, the participants’ body mass index, and whether participants supplemented with nutrients (zinc and antioxidants) to slow AMD development.

Although genetics play a large part in who will get AMD, there are lifestyle choices that can greatly influence a person’s risks for AMD.  Researchers found that among individuals with one particular genotype (homozygous C3 risk genotype), the chance of suffering from the advanced form of AMD increased from approximately three times the risk for nonsmokers to almost 10 times the risk for smokers.

Study authors hope that learning more about how to predict who is at risk for AMD will give doctors and patients better information about how to better treat and even help prevent AMD.

Published:  Prediction Model for Prevalence and Incidence of Advanced Age-Related Macular Degeneration Based on Genetic, Demographic, and Environmental Variables, Seddon, et al, Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science. 2009;50:2044-2053.

Detection based on photoreceptor cells.

Australian scientists may have made a discovery that could lead to the development of better tests to detect eye diseases like glaucoma and macular degeneration.  Research published in  the Journal of Vision suggests that color sensing cells in retina, which were previously believed to be able to only respond to specific colors, can also detect black and white moving objects as well.  According to lead researcher Paul Martin: “For a long time we’ve had an image of the brain as a kind of computer, with particular pathways or ‘wires’ for particular nerve signals.  Now, it is becoming clear the wiring is a lot less precise than a computer.”

What might this mean for you when its time to be screened for eye disease?  Discoveries like this one help scientists better understand how cells in the eyes respond to stimuli, and the more they know about how the eye works, the more able they are to improve eye testing procedures and technologies.

Source: ABC Science

The Trouble With Eye Drops

A new study finds that the majority of people who self-administer eye drops to manage their glaucoma are having trouble hitting the target.  More than 25% of those studied failed to get the drops in their eyes.  Of those who were successful, few were able to give themselves exactly the right dosage.  Researchers were surprised by the low success rate and by the fact that most people did not realize that they were having trouble getting the study’s required single drop in each eye.

Study authors say that this proves that eye care providers should teach patients the best way to administer the drops, which is usually with a mirror, tilting the head back and placing the drop in the eye while holding down the lower eyelid. Family members and certain devices may also be of help.

SOURCE: https://link.reuters.com/rum98m

Medications that Can Contribute to High Blood Pressure

According to the Johns Hopkins medical team, the following medications can increase one’s blood pressure: ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil); corticosteroids like prednisone; cyclosporine (Gengraf, Neoral, Sandimmune; used to suppress the immune system); epoetin alfa (Epogen, Procrit; used to treat anemia in cancer patients); estrogens such as those in hormone replacement therapy; migraine drugs such as sumatriptan (Imitrex); the weight loss drug sibutramine (Meridia); and nasal decongestants. Over-the-counter cough, cold, and asthma medications also may raise blood pressure, so always check with your doctor before using one.

Habits and lifestyle can also contribute to hypertension including: weight, ethnicity, activity level, tobacco use, sodium intake, potassium intake, stress, anger, alcohol consumption, age, and family history.  Cutting back on salt, eating more vegetables, avoiding sugar, caffeine, and food allergens and reducing your exposure to lead and other heavy metals can all help to reduce your blood pressure. Other complementary approaches that may help: acupuncture, biofeedback, meditation, yoga and auricular (ear) acupressure.

Learn more about natural hypertension reduction.

Diabetic Retinopathy Patients Have Lower Lycopene Levels

Measuring serum lycopene levels may help doctors diagnose and evaluate patients with diabetic retinopathy.

A recent study finds that lycopene levels were significantly lower in individuals with diabetes. According to the study, “subjects with proliferative diabetic retinopathy had significantly lower lycopene levels than subjects without diabetic retinopathy or with nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy.”

This study and others have found that oxidative stress is related to the  development of microvascular complications (conditions related to diabetes including include diabetic nephropathy, diabetic neuropathy, and diabetic retinopathy)  in patients with diabetes.  Lycopene has been found to play a role in the prevention of oxidative stress-related disease.

Lycopene is found in its high levels in tomatoes, but apricots, guava, watermelon, papaya, and pink grapefruit are also significant sources.

 

Household cleaners linked to breast cancer

Study shows breast-cancer risk was highest among women who reported the most use of cleaning products and air fresheners, and was double the risk for those who reported low use of the products.

The Cape Cod Breast Cancer & Environment Study assessed the health of women in Massachusetts and found a likely link between home cleaning products and air fresheners use and breast cancer.  The researchers determined that the risk of breast cancer was highest in those women who used the products the most:  double the risk of women who used such products infrequently.

Editor’s Note: We recommend using natural house cleaners and air fresheners as these are free from chemicals and potentially hazardous products. You can get these online or at your health food store. Other natural cleaners include Murphy’s and Dr. Bronner’s cleaners which may be available in your supermarket.  Even better, and far more economically, you can use baking soda and white vinegar for almost all cleaning tasks.  Here’s a great article on cleaning your home with baking soda, white vinegar and lemon.

 

Number of U.S. Cases of Glaucoma Don’t Have To Be On the Rise

A recent article in Yahoo New states that the changing nature of the US population will mean more cases of glaucoma.  Age, obesity, and race can all be factors that may influence one’s chances of getting glaucoma (blacks and Hispanics are more likely to develop the disease).  Known as the “silent thief,” by the time one notices the tell-tale decrease in peripheral vision, the disease is already in a very advanced stage. Glaucoma is the damage of the optic nerve, and though often linked to pressure in the eyes, this is not always the culprit.

The number of cases of glaucoma does not have to increase, however, just because we are living longer or because the population is becoming more diverse.  Changes in diet and lifestyle can reduce your risk of glaucoma and other eye diseases and improve your overall health.  For more details, please visit our pages on glaucoma management.

Antioxidants Can Help Protect Against Metabolic Syndrome

A diet enriched with antioxidant nutrients can help to improve insulin resistance in adults with metabolic syndrome.  Individuals with metabolic syndrome exhibit increased some or all of the following: waist circumference, blood pressure, fasting glucose and triglycerides, and a reduction in high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol.  They have a reduced ability to utilize insulin, and are at an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

Subjects participating in the study were all placed on 1,500 calorie per diets for 3 months, but only a subgroup were provided with fruits and vegetables high in antioxidants.  All lost weight, but only those who received the antioxidant-enriched diet had significant reductions in insulin resistance.  The antioxidants were thought to have helped reduce oxidative stress, which may help protect against a number of conditions, including metabolic syndrome.

Source: https://www.lef.org/newsletter/2010/0629_High-Antioxidant-Diet-Improves-Insulin-Sensitivity-in-Obese-Men-Women.htm

Antioxidants play a vital role in the reduction of eye disease too.  Learn more about antioxidants.