Controlling Diabetes Is Critical to Protecting Your Vision

Diabetes can cause eye disease that results in any one of a group of conditions, all of which have the potential to cause severe vision loss and blindness.

Among people with diabetes, retinopathy is the most common cause of vision loss and blindness.  Diabetic retinopathy involved changes to the blood vessels in the eye’s retina that can cause them to bleed or leak fluid, distorting one’s vision.  Diabetic macular edema is a result of retinopathy that causes swelling in the area of the retina called the macula.  Cataracts and glaucoma can also be caused by diabetes.

Under the care of your doctor, controlling diabetes through prescribed medications, staying physically active and/or maintaining a healthy diet can delay or prevent vision loss.

Early detection, timely treatment and appropriate follow-up care of diabetic eye disease can help protect against vision loss.  Because diabetic eye diseases can go unnoticed until vision loss occurs, people with diabetes should get a comprehensive dilated eye exam at least once a year.

Source:  The National Eye Institute of the National Institutes of Health