How to Prevent Glaucoma, Cataracts, and Macular Degeneration

As we age, our vision unfortunately deteriorates. For most of us, this deterioration is marked by one of three diseases: glaucoma, cataracts, and macular degeneration (often referred to as AMD). Considered the “Big Three,” these diseases impact over 40 million people in the United States – 4.2 million have glaucoma, 20.5 million have cataracts, and nearly 20 million have AMD. Luckily, there is a lot you can do to prevent glaucoma, cataracts, and macular degeneration in your younger years.

These eye conditions affect so much of your life, from reading and watching TV to travel plans. Good vision is the key to most hobbies, and it goes a long way in helping you maintain relationships you care about throughout your life. So, the more you do at a young age to prevent these conditions from taking over, the better quality of life you will have in the long run.

Cataracts

Since cataracts are by far the most common vision condition we will experience as we age, we’ll start with some strategies to prevent them. Cataracts are caused by an excess of protein building up on the lens of the eye, obstructing vision. If you’ve ever seen an older person with cloudy-looking eyes, they probably have cataracts. Since they impact your central vision, they greatly negatively impact your quality of life.

Cataracts also often cause halos around light sources, which makes activities like driving at night dangerous. This is why elderly people often lose their independence – if they can’t drive themselves somewhere after dark, they’ll stay home or depend on others for rides. This is why it’s so important to know about early prevention options as well as forms of treatment so that you are prepared to tackle cataracts as you age.

The most important thing you can do to prevent cataracts is change your diet. Focusing on antioxidants can make a world of difference in the fight against cataracts.

Free radicals, the force behind most cataracts, are unstable atoms that cause damage and sometimes death to the cells in your body. However, antioxidants balance out the free radicals and prevent cell damage. Foods rich in antioxidants include the following:

• Berries: especially blueberries, cranberries, and blackberries
• Pomegranate
• Beans
• Russet potatoes
• Artichokes

With so many options to incorporate more antioxidants into your body, it’s easy to make a few changes. From your morning smoothie to your dinner routine, it’s easy to add these fruits and veggies to make your diet more colorful.

Sun exposure is also a major cause of this condition, so wearing sunglasses every time you go outside is a must. Cataracts can also be caused by an eye injury. So, wearing the appropriate eye protection can also make all the difference.

Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Unfortunately, AMD is the one eye condition that is difficult, and even impossible, to escape. Just as the rest of our body deteriorates as we age, so does the macula. There just isn’t a way to freeze time and preserve your 20-year-old vision forever. However, there are still things youcan do to prevent this disease from progressing too quickly.

AMD progresses differently in everyone, and so it impacts people’s vision somewhat differently. During the late stages of the disease, though, most people will see distorted, dark, cloudy, and even spotted images. It massively impacts your quality of life.

Just as with cataracts, one of the best ways to prevent and slow the progression of AMD is to make sure you are getting the proper nutrients. You can get these through your diet or through supplements.

If you’re looking to prevent AMD through diet while you’re young, it’s best to focus on anti-inflammatory foods. For example, try introducing a daily herbal tea into your diet. This will offer some awesome anti-stress properties as well. If you’re looking for something a little more exciting for your taste buds, coconut water is also a great option.

Conversely, you’ll want to avoid inflammatory foods like caffeine, alcohol, processed and packaged foods, trans fats, and added sugars. These can all speed up the progress of the disease.

Glaucoma

This is perhaps the scariest of the Big Three diseases because, at its worst, glaucoma can often lead to blindness. Glaucoma is caused by the eye’s inability to drain the fluid from the eye properly or quickly enough. Therefore, the pressure builds and presses down on the cells of the eye. When this pressure goes unmonitored, it can worsen and damage the cells in the eyes, which is when you start to lose your vision.

As with cataracts and AMD, diet is again one of the best ways to tackle this disease early on. For glaucoma prevention, the thing you will want to focus on is carotenoids.

Carotenoids are what give vegetables their pigments. These carotenoids make it easier for our eyes to absorb vitamin A, which is essential to our eyes’ health. Foods high in carotenoids will help regulate the pressure in the eye and drain the fluid. They can also do a lot to prevent the pressure from building up in the first place. The best foods include anything that has a really nice pigment, such as carrots, sweet bell peppers, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, and dark leafy greens.

Fighting Glaucoma, Cataracts, and Macular Degeneration

Though the Big Three sounds like a group of bandits from the Wild West, they really aren’t that scary once you know how to prevent glaucoma, cataracts, and macular degeneration. One thing we can all do to help protect ourselves from AMD, cataracts, and glaucoma is to make a slight change in diet. Focusing on carotenoids, anti-inflammatory foods, and antioxidants will go a long way in preventing any and all of these diseases. The earlier you start, the better your results will be.