Macular degeneration, also known as poor or deteriorating eye health is a big problem. Many people simply aren’t taking care of their eyes. This article will cover macular degeneration, the causes and symptoms and also how to treat it effectively.
What Is Macular Degeneration?
Macular degeneration, put simply, is eye disease which is caused by the degeneration of cells of the macula lutea. It can affect people of all ages but is a particular problem as you age and is more common in 50+ people. When you think about your eyes and how essential they are to your every day, it’s strange that so many people don’t take steps to prevent this. Retina and macular damage is hardly ever reversible. When it comes to eye health, prevention is better than a cure.
Causes Of Macular Degeneration:
Because it occurs mainly through aging, there are no specific causes that cause macular degeneration. There are however a few risk factors that you may fall in to. These could be a good indicator that you may experience the disease at some point in your life.
This is most common and the cell degeneration just occurs naturally as you age.
Macular degeneration seems to be more common in white people, but that is not to say that others races cannot be affected.
It may have something to do with the cells in your body, but if you have a fair or light complexion, you are at a higher risk of eye disease as well.
Similar to skin pigmentation, people with lighter iris color have an increased risk of the disease.
It is well known now that smoking can seriously damage your macula and retina.
There are other causes too, such as medications which result in blurred vision and sometimes blindness.
Symptoms Of Macular Degeneration:
There are four main symptoms of macular disease that you should be aware of. If you experience any of these, you should seek medical help as soon as possible.
This is the most common symptom and is also the one which is most overlooked. Usually the blurring is worse in one eye and sufferers ignore it because the good vision of the other eye masks it.
A loss of macular function will cause blind spots in your vision which will become more and more impaired as the cells degrade.
Objects will appear to be different colors and sometimes even different shapes to what they really are. Also, straight lines will look irregular or bent.
Objects Appear Smaller:
The affected eye will often see objects as being smaller than they are in the other eye. This causes confusion as your brain then interprets the object as being smaller than it is, causing trips and falls.
You might not even know that these symptoms you are experiencing are from macular degeneration. If you’ve experienced any of these, seek health advice.
How To Treat Macular Degeneration:
There are a number of advanced treatments available for macular regeneration. Often these include drugs injected into your eye, laser treatment, photodynamic therapy and sometimes even surgery.
If your symptoms are already severe, your local health professional can advice you on which of these treatments is best for your specific condition.
For those of you looking to prevent these symptoms from happening, there are less severe options. Good nutrition is the best way to prevent the degeneration from happening. Dark green, leafy vegetables containing lutein will protect your eyes from UV light and the damage it can cause. Beta-carotene, found in carrots, apricots and tomatoes, is another ingredient which prevents oxidative damage of the tissue and cells to prevent degeneration.
Also, many health professionals advocate a vitamin and mineral supplementation regimen to ensure your body is getting all the nutrients it needs to maintain healthy vision. They also advise complementing this with omega 3 supplements to ensure your eyes remain as healthy as possible.
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