When you have chronically high blood sugar, it can damage the tiny blood vessels carrying blood to your retina. Your retina is neural tissue that lines the back of your eye. It captures light that enters your eye and converts it into neural signals that your brain processes into images.
The term “diabetic eye disease” describes specific eye conditions that are more common in people with diabetes. These diseases include:
Over time, these conditions can lead to vision loss or blindness. But if you have diabetes, you can turn to board-certified ophthalmologist Vicki Y. Lin, MD, at iSight Vision Care in Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach, CA, to help protect your eyesight for the years to come.
When the blood vessels feeding your retina leak and swell, they can bleed into other areas of your eye and cause scarring or dangerously high pressure. It’s also common to have blurry vision when you’re getting your blood sugar under control.
To avoid long-term damage, you have to keep your blood sugar at ideal levels to protect the health of your blood vessels.
Having health conditions like high blood pressure and high cholesterol in combination with diabetes increases your risk of diabetic eye disease. Don’t wait until you have symptoms, especially if you have diabetes. Talk with Dr. Lin about ways you can improve your numbers to help protect your vision and overall health.
Exercise really does a body good — and your eyes too. Plus, when you have diabetes, exercise can help keep your blood sugar under control. Participating in regular physical activity can help lower your blood sugar for up to 24 hours, or even more, because it increases your body’s sensitivity to insulin.
When you combine exercise and a healthy diet, you can help control your blood sugar and reduce your risks of diabetes complications.
If you need more reasons to stop smoking, think about your eyes. You already know that smoking increases your chances of diseases like cancer and heart disease. But smoking also increases your chances of several eye diseases, including cataracts and macular degeneration.
If you have diabetes and smoke, it can also make your blood sugar harder to control, which puts you at higher risk of diabetic eye diseases.
Diabetic eye diseases usually don’t cause symptoms early on, so it’s essential to have a comprehensive diabetic eye exam each year to reduce your risk of permanent damage. As diabetic eye diseases progress, you might have symptoms that include:
These changes might indicate a serious eye condition, so contact us immediately if you have noticed differences in your vision.
For more information on preventing diabetic eye disease, call us at iSight Vision Care or request an appointment online today.
