Here’s
to your health
Your
Eyes - Windows to your Health
Maybe
you’ve been putting off a visit to your eye
care professional. After all, your eyes aren’t bothering
you so why bother? Because many eye diseases don’t
have early warning signs. For example, your eyes can be damaged
by glaucoma so slowly you don’t even realize you’re
losing vision.
So if
you haven’t had an eye exam for a while, now’s
a great time - January is Glaucoma Awareness Month.
Glaucoma actually refers to a group of diseases that are
caused by fluid pressure building up inside your eye. This
pressure can damage blood vessels and eventually damage the
optic nerve - a bundle of nerve fibers that sends visual
information to the brain.
Glaucoma
is one of the leading causes of blindness in the United
States. According to The Mayo Clinic, the most common
type of glaucoma (called “primary open-angle glaucoma”)
has no noticeable signs or symptoms – except gradual
vision loss. With early diagnosis and treatment, you can
lessen or prevent optic nerve damage and limit vision loss
related to glaucoma.
Treatments
for glaucoma reduce the pressure inside the eye. There
are a variety of treatments ranging from eye drops
to medications to surgery. But glaucoma can’t be totally
cured nor can the damage it causes be reversed. But regular
checkups and treatment in people with very early glaucoma
can prevent visual loss. And if visual loss has occurred,
further vision loss can be slowed or prevented by treatment.
Having
your eyes examined regularly is an important part of your
overall health care. The National Institute of Health
points out that regular eye exams and comprehensive dilated
eye exams can catch problems that could lead to visual impairment
and blindness in the early stages while they can still be
treated, halted or reversed. Also, changes in your eyes may
alert your eye care specialist to other health issues.
Your
eyes are said to be the windows to your soul, but they’re
also windows to your health.
[Sources: The National Institute of Health and The Mayo
Clinic]
If
you’d like to learn more about the types of glaucoma,
specific symptoms, treatments options, Vision Problems
as you Age, and the kids' site See All You Can See, go
to Links.
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