AMD/Low Vision Awareness Month
Macular Degeneration
Macular degeneration, often called AMD or ARMD, is the leading cause of vision loss and it affects over 1.5 million adults over the age of 50. Some of the risk factors for macular degeneration include age, heredity, smoking, and poor nutrition. Important nutrients needed for good eye health are omega-3 and lutein, but these are typically not found in even the healthiest of diets. Prevent Blindness American recommends supplements with these nutrients need to be taken to keep vision sharp.
There is no cure for macular degeneration so having regularly scheduled eye exams is crucial to eye health.
Low Vision
When someone describes their vision as "low vision" it means they have partial sight and their sight is not corrected by glasses or contact lenses. Their vision is still considered functional, but their daily life and activity levels are affected by it. Some diseases or eye injuries that can cause low vision are cataracts, glaucoma or diabetic retinopathy.
When you stop and think about how much we depend on our sight, it's easy to see where it would be hard to deal with the loss of it. It has to be extremely difficult for these people, and with most of them being elderly that can make it even harder.
There is hope and help available and there are tools and devices available to give these sufferers some sense of normalcy, including optical aides, high-tech aides and non-optical aides.
