How do we lose our vision?

Question

What makes you lose your good eye sight. like 20/20 and then needing glasses. My sisters need glasses. Now my little sister says she can't see the chalk board. I never red a whole book in my life. Except childrens books. But I do spend some time watching video clips on my ipod, and going on the computer to do stuff. What should i do to keep my eyes. I still want to look at girls. Also i don't want to need to wear contacts or glasses! what food can i eat to help. what are things i should avoid?

Answer 1

There is a thing called genetics. Your siblings just may have drawn the short straw when it comes to eye sight...congratulations for escaping the curse. Now start reading, poor eyesight in no excuse for a poor education.

Answer 2

I've been nearsighted since the age of 10, which was nearly 40 years ago. In those days, we did not have personal computers. I did not spend much time watching TV either. Still, I developed this problem and I think the reason was because I was born with the tendency and it started showing up when I got older. I don't believe anything could have been done to prevent it. I do understand it is hereditary although nobody else in my immediate family has it. My mother had to go back several generations and find a relative who was said to be nearly blind but all the evidence points to him being nearsighted. It looks like the problem skipped a couple of generations until it showed up in me. My older daughter also has this problem and I believe she got it from me.

Answer 3

Myopia or shortsightedness is related to lengthening of the eye and this can be genetic, so nothing much can be done about it. But too much nearwork can also lead to this problem. It is advised especially in children to practise good eye habits, which means after doing nearwork of 30-40 minutes, they should take breaks of 15 minutes looking outside the window or something far to relax the muscles inside the eye. They are also encourage to cut down near work and do more outdoor activities. Unfortunately, there is no food that can help this problem.

Answer 4

Can't help you on this except to go to a Doctor and have your eyes checked. That is what I do and have discovered that my left eye is getting weaker and I have to wear glasses to help out on this. So you go to a Doctor and get your eyes checked and do it regularly. That way you should know whether or not your eyes are in danger. Good Luck.

Answer 5

Well you should avoid putting your eyes too close to the computer screen or television. You really should do some more reading, but if you really dont want too try eating lots of carrots they're really good for your eyesight.

Answer 6

They both are Just the thing for your health. If you eat both, you're better off. But yea, I had choose fruits because they taste better.

Answer 7

Geting OLDER

Answer 8

lighting like floresent,dim light,different things ask the eye dr they can tell you.

Answer 9

We all have been told by someone at some time, "You'll hurt your eyes if you do that!" But do you really know what is or is not good for your eyes?
Test yourself with the following true or false statements and see how much you know about your eyes.

"Reading in dim light is harmful to your eyes." True or False?

False. Using your eyes in dim light does not damage them. For centuries, all nighttime reading and sewing was done by candlelight or with gas or kerosene lamps. However, good lighting does make reading easier and can prevent eye fatigue.

"Using computers can damage your eyes." True or False?

False. Working on computers or video display terminals (VDTs) will not harm your eyes. Often, when using a VDT for long periods of time, just as when reading or doing other close work, you blink less often than normal. This reduced rate of blinking makes your eyes dry, which may lead to the feeling of eyestrain or fatigue.

Try to take regular breaks to look up or across the room. Looking at objects farther away often relieves the feeling of strain on your eyes. Keep the monitor between 18 to 24 inches from your face and at a slight downward angle. Also consider the use of artificial tears. If your vision blurs or your eyes tire easily, you should have your eyes examined by an ophthalmologist.

"Wearing the wrong kind of eyeglasses damages your eyes." True or False?

False. Eyeglasses are devices used to sharpen your vision. Although correct eyeglasses or contacts help you to see clearly, wearing a pair with the wrong lenses, or not wearing glasses at all, will not physically damage your eyes. However, children younger than 8 years old who need eyeglasses should wear their own prescription to prevent the possibility of developing amblyopia or "lazy eye."

"Children outgrow crossed or misaligned eyes." True or False?

False. Children do not outgrow crossed eyes. A child whose eyes are misaligned may develop poor vision in one eye because the brain will "turn off" or ignore the image from the misaligned or lazy eye. The unused or misaligned eye will not develop good vision unless it is forced to work, usually by patching the stronger eye.

Children who appear to have misaligned eyes should be examined by an ophthalmologist. In general, the earlier misaligned eyes are treated, the better. Treatment may include patching, eyeglasses, eyedrops, surgery or a combination of these methods.

"Learning disabilities are caused by eye problems." True or False?

False. Difficulties with reading, mathematics and other learning problems in children are often referred to as learning disabilities. There is no strong evidence that vision problems cause learning disabilities or that eye exercises cure learning problems.

Children with learning difficulties often need help from teachers and people with special training. Before such treatment begins, it is important for the child to have a complete medical eye examination to make certain he or she is seeing as well as possible.

"Sitting close to the television can damage children's eyes." True or False?

False. Children can focus at close distance without eyestrain better than adults. They often develop the habit of holding reading materials close to their eyes or sitting right in front of the television.

There is no evidence that this damages their eyes, and the habit usually diminishes as children grow older. Children with nearsightedness (myopia) sometimes sit close to the television in order to see the images more clearly.

"Eating carrots improves your vision." True or False?

False. Carrots are rich in vitamin A, which is essential for sight, but many other foods also contain this vitamin. A well-balanced diet, with or without carrots, provides all the vitamin A necessary for good vision.

"People with weak eyes should avoid reading fine print." True or False?

False. It is said that people with weak eyes or people who wear glasses will "wear out" their eyes sooner if they read fine print or do a lot of detail work.

The concept of the eye as a muscle is incorrect. The eye more closely resembles a camera. A camera will not wear out sooner just because it is used to photograph intricate detail. You can use your eyes without fear of wearing them out.

"Wearing eyeglasses will cause you to become dependent on them." True or False?

False. Eyeglasses are used to correct blurry vision. Since clear vision with eyeglasses is preferable to uncorrected vision, you may find that you want to wear your eyeglasses more often. Although it may feel as if you are becoming dependent on your eyeglasses, you are actually just getting used to seeing clearly.

"Older people who gain 'second sight' may be developing cataracts." True or False?

True. Older individuals who wear reading eyeglasses sometimes find themselves able to read without their eyeglasses and think their eyesight is improving.

The truth is they are becoming more nearsighted, which can be a sign of early cataract development.

"A cataract must be 'ripe' before it is removed." True or False?

False. With older surgical techniques, it was thought to be safer to remove a cataract when it was "ripe." With today's modern surgical procedures, a cataract can be removed whenever it begins to interfere with a person's lifestyle.

If you are unable to see well enough to do the things you like or need to do, you should consider cataract surgery. Surgery is the only way to remove a cataract.

"Contact lenses can prevent nearsightedness from getting worse." True or False?

False. Some people have been led to believe that wearing contact lenses will permanently correct nearsightedness so that eventually they won't need either contacts or eyeglasses.

There is no evidence that wearing contact lenses produces a permanent improvement in vision or prevents nearsightedness from getting worse.

"Eyes can be transplanted." True or False?

False. Medical science has no way to transplant whole eyes. Our eyes are connected to the brain by the optic nerve.

Much like a fiber optic cable, the optic nerve is made up of more than 1 million tiny nerve fibers. This nerve cannot be reconnected once it has been severed. Because of this, the eye is never removed from its socket during surgery.

The cornea, the clear front part of the eye, has been successfully transplanted for many years. Corneal transplant is sometimes confused with an eye transplant.

"All 'eye doctors' are the same." True or False?

False. An ophthalmologist is a medical doctor (M.D. or D.O.) with special training to diagnose and treat all diseases of the eye.

To become an ophthalmologist requires a minimum of eight years of medical school and hospital training after college. An ophthalmologist is qualified to provide all aspects of eye care, including cataract, laser and other eye surgery.

Optometrists (O.D.) and opticians are other types of eye care professionals. They are trained and licensed to provide some aspects of eye care, but they are not medical doctors and have not attended medical school and residency training. In most states, they cannot prescribe all medications or perform surgery.

Notes

"Lazy eye" is often treated by patching the strong eye, forcing the weaker eye to work.

Answer 10

Some of the more common difficulties a person with sight loss may experience include:
Judging the position and depth of steps
Reading standard print
Seeing the time on their watch
Using the telephone
Identifying money
Carrying out everyday routine tasks at home such as writing a shopping
list
Crossing the road during the day or at night
Recognising faces
Causes of Sight Loss
A person with sight loss is seeing much less or may see nothing at all. Different eye conditions create different difficulties. Very few people are totally blind. A few have perception of light only; some have a loss of vision in the centre of their eye, others have no side vision. Some see everything as a blur while others have blank spots. Some people with sight loss have enough vision to read but may have difficulty with night vision. Don’t assume that a person, who has enough vision to do one thing, can see enough to do everything.

In Ireland, some of the most common eye conditions are macular degeneration, glaucoma, detached retina, diabetic retinopathy and cataracts.


Macular degeneration
This condition causes a loss of vision in the centre of the eye. Reading, writing and up-close work can become difficult. Sometimes the person may experience a problem with recognising colours. Daylight vision may be affected so increased lighting may be required. The person may have some side vision so they usually will be able to see to move about. It is a more common cause of sight loss among older people. Find out more about macular degeneration.

Glaucoma

A person with glaucoma may experience loss of side vision. Early onset glaucoma causes a subtle loss of contrast, for example, difficulties with seeing steps on a stairs or the kerb on the pavement. For a person with advanced glaucoma, moving around can be difficult, especially at night when vision is more reduced. There may be a small central area where the person can still see to read and do up close work but side vision has been lost. This is also called tunnel vision. As the early symptoms of glaucoma are not very obvious, routine eye examinations are important for early detection. You are more at risk of developing glaucoma if a member of your family has this condition, if you are shortsighted or if you are of African or Asian origin. Find out more about glaucoma.

Detached Retina
Detached retina will result in a loss of vision where the retina has been damaged. A person’s retina may detach for many reasons. Retinal detachment is more common among middle aged people and short sighted people. Detached retina may appear like a dark shadow over part of the eye or the person may experience bright flashes of light or showers of dark spots called floaters. These symptoms are not painful. Many people experience flashes and floaters that are not harmful and these are not necessarily a cause for alarm. However, if they seem to be getting worse and part of vision is reducing then the person needs to see an eye specialist urgently. In many cases, the damage can be repaired. Find out more about detached retina.

Diabetic Retinopathy

This condition causes a partial blurring of vision or patchy loss of vision. Near vision may reduce and a person may have difficulty with up close reading. Vision levels may vary on a daily basis. Diabetic retinopathy is a complication of advanced diabetes. Not all people with diabetes will develop this condition. However, people with diabetes need to maintain their vision by managing their blood glucose levels and getting their eyes checked regularly by an eye specialist. Damage to the back of the eye can often be repaired if detected at an early stage. Find out more about diabetic retinopathy.

Cataracts

Cataracts make things look blurred and misty. Some people may have double vision. As a cataract develops its centre becomes more and more yellow, giving everything the person sees a yellowish tinge. Colours may become dulled and the person may see little detail. People with cataracts can be very sensitive to light and glare, light scatters and produces a ‘halo’. Bright light or very sunny days can dazzle the person while too little light can make it difficult to see.

A cataract is not a skin that grows over they eye. A cataract is a clouding of part of the eye called the lens. A person’s vision blurs or becomes dim because light cannot pass through the clouded lens to the back of the eye. A cloudiness in the lens may occur in more than one place, so that the light rays as they enter the eye are split up, causing a double image.
Many people have some cataract development in later life and most cases can be treated successfully with surgery. Cataracts can also be present at birth or develop shortly afterwards. This is known as congenital cataracts. Find out more about cataracts.

Good nutrition is very important for both your general and eye health. Good nutrition helps our body to grow, repair wear and tear, protect against infection and to function properly. An eye condition called ‘xerophthalmia’, which is a common cause of childhood blindness in developing countries, is a good example of how nutrition and eye health go hand in hand. This condition is caused by a lack of vitamin A in a person’s diet and could be prevented by eating fresh vegetables, fat (animal and plant) and protein (eg meat, eggs, cheese, fish, poultry, milk, yoghurt, dairy products, nuts, seeds, pulses and grains).

There are many books on nutrition and eating a balanced diet. This topic will only be looked at briefly in this leaflet. For further information on nutrition and health eating contact the British Nutrition Foundation (BNF).


What might cause age-related eye disease?
There are many causes for the various different eye conditions.

Sometimes an eye condition can be related to another medical condition, and some are inherited. Much research is being carried out in various areas of eye health. Often there is no known cause for the development of an eye condition - these conditions are often known as ‘idiopathic’.

A few possible risk factors of eye disease are:

Age
Although it may sound obvious, age is the biggest risk factor in age-related eye disease. As we get older the changes in our body processes also affect our eyes.

Oxygen is essential for the human body, but it can also be harmful. Oxygen can produce “free-radicals” which damage cells or prevent them from regenerating as they used to. This cell regeneration process is affected as we get older due to free radicals and other factors.

Our bodies do have a natural protection against the effect of free radicals but under certain conditions this protection is not good enough.

Free radicals damage the retina, a light sensitive layer at the back of the eye. They also affect the lens, a clear tissue found behind the coloured part of the eye known as the iris. The lens helps to focus light onto the retina which then sends an image of what we are looking at to our brain. This is how we see. Mostly, these free radicals are neutralised by the body’s defences. Most vitamins and minerals can help the body and our eyes to combat the effects of free radicals. These vitamins and micronutrients are known as antioxidants and their role in maintaining eye health will be explored in this leaflet.

Smoking
Smoking causes harm to the tissues of the eye. Research has confirmed the direct, harmful effects of smoking on eyesight, particularly in the development of cataracts and age-related macular degeneration (AMD). We also know that smoking can make diabetes-related sight problems worse. Cigarette smoking increases free radicals which accelerate ageing and alters the body’s ability to absorb or extract necessary vitamins and minerals from food. Smoking reduces appetite which may result in a poor diet. Poor nutrition also has an adverse effect on eye health. Passive smoking, that is not smoking yourself but breathing in other people’s smoke, is almost as harmful as smoking yourself.

While cataracts are treatable and therefore do not lead to blindness, they remain a major cause of sight loss in the UK. Treatment options for AMD are limited and smokers do not only double their risk of developing AMD, they also tend to develop it earlier than non-smokers.

It has been shown that stopping smoking can reduce the risk of macular degeneration developing. Your GP can tell you about NHS stop smoking services in your area.

Diet
A balanced diet, with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables is good for your eye health. Eating a diet low in saturated fats but rich in omega 3 fats and micronutrients derived from green leafy vegetables, fruit, fish and nuts may help prevent and slow down the progression of AMD and age-related cataracts.

Obesity
Obesity is increasingly being discussed as a risk factor for sight loss. Recent research suggests that obesity may put someone more at risk of developing an eye condition which can cause sight loss, including AMD, cataracts and retinal vein occlusion. In addition, obesity significantly increases the risk of developing diabetes and with it, diabetic retinopathy. Further research is now needed to gain better understanding of the links between obesity and these eye conditions.

Sunlight
It has been suggested that eyes can be damaged by continuous exposure to intense sunlight. Many studies show that prolonged periods of sunlight exposure are a risk factor for the development of AMD. The sun’s rays have been linked to the development of cataracts.

For this reason it is very important to reduce exposure of the eye to sunlight. Sunglasses that offer good protection from all angles, are recommended. These not only protect the eye from direct sunlight but also from scattered or reflected light that can enter the eye from above, the sides or below. Wearing a hat with a good brim can decrease eye exposure to light by 30-50 per cent. Sunglasses and hats are, therefore, also recommended for children

Gender
There is a higher rate of AMD and cataracts among women, possibly because they tend to live longer than men. There also seems to be a hormonal influence and it is reported that Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) can reduce these risks.

For further information on risk factors, see feeling great, looking good - Eye Test Action Day 2006.

Nutrition for the eye
Vitamins and the eye
In various studies and clinical trials antioxidant vitamins found in certain foods have been linked with eye health. They help to maintain healthy cells and tissues in the eye.

The main focus has been on the anti-oxidant vitamins A, C and E. These vitamins can be found in many different sources of fruit and vegetables such as oranges, kiwis, grapefruit, dried apricots, tomatoes, peppers, raw carrots, green leafy vegetables including kale and spinach, green peas, green beans and brussel sprouts. They can also be found in nuts, seeds, dairy products and eggs. These are only a few of the food types in which antioxidant vitamins can be found. The British Nutrition Foundation can provide you with further information on this. Their contact details are at the end of this leaflet.

Lutein and eye health
More recently it has been suggested that two types of antioxidants, known as ‘carotenoids’, called Lutein (pronounced Loo-teen) and Zeaxanthin (pronounced Zay-a-za-thin) may also help with eye health. Some studies have found that people who have a good diet rich in carotenoids, particularly lutein and zeaxanthin, have a lower risk of developing AMD. Lutein and Zeaxanthin can be found naturally in vegetables and fruit. For example, Lutein can be found in yellow peppers, mango, bilberries, and green leafy vegetables such as kale, spinach, chard and broccoli. Zeaxanthin can be found in orange sweet peppers, broccoli, corn, lettuce (not iceberg), spinach, tangerines, oranges and eggs. Many of these overlap with food types in which vitamins A, E and C are present.

Vitamins supplements and diet
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD)
A large research trial, called the ‘Age-Related Eye Disease Study’ (AREDS), showed that high quantities of the antioxidant vitamins A, C, E, beta-carotene and the minerals zinc as zinc oxide, and copper as cupric oxide, can help to slow down the progression of AMD. It would be very hard to obtain the large quantity of vitamins used in the trial from your diet. Therefore some people who have AMD may consider supplementation with vitamins and anti-oxidants. Such high dosages of vitamins and minerals might have possible side effects on the body.

For this reason it is very important to consult your doctor first before taking a supplement.

Eye health
Following the AREDS research trial there have been over 150 smaller scale studies looking at how vitamins and minerals, both from food and in a vitamin supplement, can help eye health in general, and in particular AMD and cataracts. A number of these studies have looked specifically at the carotenoids Lutein and Zeaxanthin which have been particularly associated with healthy eyes.

Some of these studies have shown how certain vitamin and mineral supplements can have a positive effect on eyes and sight. Others have shown there to be no or little benefit. For this reason various organisations are calling for further, larger scale research.

As a result of these studies there are now a number of different supplements for eye health on the market. There is still divided medical opinion on the use of supplements for both eye health and for preventing, or slowing down, the progression of AMD and cataracts in particular.

The general consensus of opinion is that with a good balanced diet that includes sufficient fresh fruits and vegetables there should be no need to use supplements.

However, research has shown that many people in the UK do not get enough vitamins and minerals from their diet. Some people might consider taking a supplement for their general and eye health when :

their diet does not include enough fresh fruit and vegetable
diet does not include enough vitamins and minerals
vitamins and minerals from food are not adequately absorbed by the body .
it is hard to obtain or prepare fresh fruit and vegetables
they have been told to take a supplement by their doctor or nutritionist.