Cataract ,Life style factors, Support and Prevention.

Cloudy or milky appearance of your eye lens is termed cataract. It is one of the commonest eye defect and cause of blindness worldwide. You need a crystal clear lens which would send a sharp image to the back of lens called retina. With cataract in your eye/eyes your vision becomes hazy or diminished. Although quite common with aging, in most cases it does not require treatment. When it is causing visual disturbances it does have to be surgically taken care of and removed through one of the simple procedures available. With all pre-surgical condition ideal, cataract effected lens removal has high success rate with restoration of your normal vision.

You may be effected by cataract in one or both lenses of your eyes. And your eyes may be effected by opacity of your lens at different time. It is slowly developing abnormality which is usually not associated with any pain or eye redness. Aging is constant cause of your cataract but there are several other factor playing their role in causing clouding(cataract) of your lens.

Ÿ  Incidence of cataract ranges from 55% to 60% over the age of sixty years. Both male and female are effected by cataract equally. In US, and UK almost 50% population is effected by cataract in their old age. In very rare instances baby may be born with cataract or they may develop this anomaly as younger child.

Ÿ  Symptoms of cataract are attributed to failure of  light or image to pass through the opaque lens. Initially the opacity may be smaller ,but when not taken care it becomes wider in dimensions. This may cause you following symptoms;

-           blurred vision

-           diminished vision at night

-           colors appear faded

-           double vision in one eye

-           difficulty in seeing in glare or sun light

-           heightened nearsightedness

Life style factors, Support and Prevention

It is a well known fact that aging will bring you closer to developing cataract. If you want to minimize your risk, the foremost lifestyle modification that keeps your lens in healthier state will be dietary changes. It  has been studied that individuals who eat more of animal protein have greater risk of cataract. Reducing meat and adding more fresh vegetables and fruits in your platter will keep your vision in good standards longer (researchers at University of Oxford 2011, report published in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition). Other home remedies that will help you improve your vision and relieve some of your cataract complication till you go for definitive surgery are mentioned here;

Ÿ  Wearing sun glasses during outdoor work will help your vision greatly. It will help avoid UVA and UVB, reduce the bright sun ray effect and glare. These are not well tolerated by your cataract effected eye/eyes.

Ÿ  Wearing a hat has same effect of protection from strong sunlight and fluorescent light. Sun rays are most intense between 10am to 3am, so you should be well aware of this fact to minimize further damage to your lens. Use non-fluorescent bulbs or special bulbs to illuminate your indoor lighting of home.

Ÿ  Wear magnifying glasses for reading purpose. This may help you busy in your office task till you have surgical correction done.

Ÿ  Communicate with your doctor/healthcare provider regularly. Keep him up dated with any changes in your visual complaints. When deem necessary make visit and have eye sight and any worsening of your cataract checked.

Ÿ  Reduce salt and saturated fats in your diet. Butter, lard and coconut oil should be avoided to minimize your cataract risk as they contain high concentration of saturated fats.

Ÿ  Eat more of fish and chicken breast to get healthy proteins, which is essential for your general health and integrity of your lens.

Prevention

The precise cause of your cataract is not known. But minimizing risk factors is the best prevention, to keep your eye sight normal and unaffected by cataract. Your cataract is incurable and neither can it be reversed with any medicine. You can adopt certain measure to prevent its occurrence in some cases or delay its progress.

Ÿ  Quit smoking with help from your healthcare personnel. He may prescribe nicotine replacement treatment methods. This includes nicotine patches, gums, inhalers. They release slow nicotine which is much lower in concentration. This will allow gradual withdrawal from your smoking without causing any symptoms.

Ÿ     Alcohol should be avoided if you want to prevent cataract in aging. You can also minimize risk by drinking in moderation.

Ÿ  Diabetes should be controlled with diet and medication, as your cataract risk runs parallel with poor diabetic state. You should be communicative and compliant with your doctor. He will guide you how to manage your diabetes and avoid related complication, specially effecting your eyes.

Ÿ  Supplement which have vitamins beneficial for your eye’s health, particularly of lens can be added. That may include beta carotene, vitamin C and E. These anti-oxidants keep glutathione levels high, which help in protection against effects of oxidants on your lens.

Ÿ  Regular eye check stands on top of all preventive measures. Your opthalmologist will maintain your eye health status. He will keep you up date about all the details about your lens and deeper structures of your eye after each visit you make. His advise should be followed. That alone in an excellent and most effective way to prevent cataract development.

Ÿ  If there is family history of cataract genetic counseling is advised .

6.0     Natural Treatment

Beta Carotene

An inactive form of vitamin A, beta carotene can be found in foods with orange, yellow, green and red pigments such as carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, bell peppers and spinach (Office of Dietary Supplements: Vitamin A and Carotenoids). Also known as pro-vitamin A, beta carotene is known to reduce the risk of age related cataract by one-fourth (Arch Ophthalmol. 2003 Mar;121(3):372-8). It is known to protect the cornea and is a cure for every eye-related illness you may be effected. Being a potent anti-oxidant, b carotene protects smokers from developing cataract (Age related eye study ,America, 2003). Other carotenoids like , xanthophylls, inhibit development of aging in your eye and protect lens from cataract. It is present in abundance in green leafy vegetables, broccoli and eggs.

Curcumin

One of nature’s finest miracle ingredients, curcumin reduces the oxidation of the eye and protects from its damaging effect. It is an antioxidant that safeguards the eye from the onset of cataract (Curr Eye Res. 2010 Feb;35(2):122-9). This substance, which is also known as curcuma longa, is an ingredient of turmeric and is famed to be anti-cataractogenic (Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2005 Jun;46(6):2092-9). Curcumin is also famed to delay diabetes-induced cataract (Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science Journal, Dr. Palla Suryanarayana et al.,  2005). The mechanism by which curcumin influences its anti-oxidant effect, is by removing free radicals from your body. These free radical are there to cause damage to your lens and cause cataract. 

Grape seed extract

Obtained from red grapes, the intake of grape seed extract (GSE) reduces the risk of cataracts (J Agric Food Chem. 2002 Aug 14;50(17):4983-8). Being an antioxidant, grape seed extract suppresses the formation of cataracts (J Cataract Refract Surg. 2006 Jun;32(6):1041-5). Grape seed extract is rich in flavonoids that have anti-oxidant properties greater than Vitamin C. It has been shown to improve circulation in eyes micro-vessels which appear to be narrowed by certain diseases. This delays the progress of cataract in your eyes. Grape seed extract is also beneficial in computer screen related eye stress. It eases such stress and improves contrast perception in 60 days of treatment with supplement containing 300mg.

Selenium

Selenium, which helps increase the absorption of antioxidants, is necessary to fight cataract off along with the aforementioned natural ingredients. Glutathione peroxide is an antioxidant enzyme that prevents the eye from cataracts. Selenium is found in nuts, seeds, seafood, meat, poultry, onions, mushrooms and grains. It has been studied that selenium in higher than normal concentration is harmful to lens. Similarly , a low selenium level can effect integrity of your lens (2006 study. So it is clear from these facts that even smaller amount of selenium , by acting as anti-oxidant, can prevent cell damage by free radical and removing them from your body. This specially effective in chronic conditions like cataract.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E as an anti-oxidant has been studied and shown to prevent and slow down the development of cataract and other eye defects. In one study lens clarity was detected to be better with high vitamin intake group compared to non-vitamin E group. In another group study long term Vitamin E supplement has shown to slow the progression of age related cataract formation. The foods that have good concentration of vitamin E are nuts and sun flower seeds.

There are few other natural ingredients that have positive effect on preventing your cataract. One of them is omega-3 fatty acid (American Journal of Epidemiology). Easily available source, all these natural ingredients benefit so many human ailment when taken in proper way and dosage. If ever you choose to supplement these vitamins and natural elements, you should always consult your health care provider for dosage, need and frequency/ day.