EYE HEALTH



CATARACTS

ON THIS PAGE:

Treatment
Natural Treatment
Computer Monitors & Cataracts
Links

HOW CATARACTS DEVELOP

Cataracts develop from a variety of reasons, including long-term ultraviolet exposure, exposure to radiation, secondary effects of diseases such as diabetes, and advanced age; they are usually a result of denaturation of lens proteins. (Denaturation example: an egg white changing from clear-liquid to white-solid while frying. The protein structure is changed by outside stress).

It is believed that oxidative stress plays a role in the development of nuclear cataracts, which are the most common type of age-related cataract.

While cataracts coincide with aging, the more likely cause, researchers believe, is accumulated exposure to ultraviolet light.

A study among Icelandair pilots showed commercial airline pilots as three times more likely to develop cataracts than people with non-flying jobs. This is thought to be caused by excessive exposure to radiation coming from outer space. Cataracts are also common in persons exposed to infrared radiation. Exposure to microwave radiation can cause cataracts.

Cataracts may be partial or complete, stationary or progressive, hard or soft.

There are various types of cataracts:

  • nuclear - A nuclear cataract is the most common type of cataract and is age-related. In a nuclear cataract, the center of the lens gradually hardens and becomes opaque.

  • cortical - often found in patients with diabetes. It forms on the outer lens, and later extends toward the center.

  • mature - Completely opaque lens, no disc view

Cataracts are also classified by their location, e.g. posterior (usually due to steroid use) and anterior (common cataract related to aging).

Cataracts are the leading cause of blindness in the world. In the United States, age-related cataracts have been reported in 42% of those between the ages of 52 to 64, 60% of those between the ages 65 and 74, and 91% of those between the ages of 75 and 85.

TREATMENT

The most effective and common treatment is to surgically remove the cloudy lens. There are two types of surgery that can be used to remove cataracts:

  • extra-capsular (extracapsular cataract extraction, or ECCE)
  • intra-capsular (intracapsular cataract extraction, or ICCE).

Extra-capsular (ECCE) surgery consists of removing the lens but leaving the majority of the lens capsule intact.

Intra-capsular (ICCE) surgery involves removing the entire lens of the eye, including the lens capsule, but it is rarely performed in modern practice. In either surgery, the cataractous lens is removed and replaced with a plastic lens, which stays in the eye permanently.

NATURAL TREATMENTS

http://alternative-medicine-and-health.com/conditions/cataract.htm

If impairment is severe, surgery is the only alternative.

  • If cloudiness is just beginning, nutritional treatment can be successful and you should make sure that you get five servings of fresh fruits and vegetables daily.

  • Avoid exposure to ultraviolet light by wearing dark glasses.

  • Reduce your sugar intake.

  • wash your eyes in triphala tea (available in Indian pharmacies and some health food stores.)

  • Vegetables rich in beta-carotene and vitamins C and E — any yellow, orange or dark green leafy vegetable — help prevent the oxidation process

  • Juices rich in beta-carotene and vitamin C can help slow the development of cataracts.

  • Carnosine-containing eye drops have demonstrated efficacy in treating corneal diseases, cataracts, glaucoma, and increased intraocular pressure.
    • NEX TAG: Carnosine eye drops
    • GOOGLE: Carnosine eye drops

NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS

  • Vitamin C with bioflavonoids: 1,000 mg. daily.
  • Vitamin E: 400 I.U. daily.
  • Selenium: 50 meg. daily.
  • Beta.carotene: 10,000 I.U. daily.
  • Inositol: 500 to 1,000 mg. daily.
  • Pantethine: 300 mg. three times daily

VISUALIZATION THERAPY

http://www.mothernature.com/Library/Bookshelf/Books/21/79.cfm

Picture yourself standing under a large waterfall. Imagine that you can remove the lens from your eye and see it in your hand, suggests the author of Healing Visualizations. Notice that the lens appears cloudy, so wash it thoroughly in the clean, clear water.

See and sense that the cataract is dissolving. Breathe out once. Before replacing the lens, envision a holy person (if you are religious) or someone you love putting some saliva onto the lens and into the empty space where the lens was, so it will stay clear and clean. Now replace the lens, knowing that it has cleared up. Open your eyes.

Dr. Epstein recommends practicing this imagery every two hours while awake, three minutes a session, for 21 days. Take 7 days off, then repeat for another 21 days, followed by another 7-day rest period and one more 21-day cycle.

PREVENTION

Wearing ultraviolet-protecting sunglasses may slow the development of cataracts.

Regular intake of antioxidants (such as vitamin C and E) is helpful.



COMPUTER MONITORS, TV, & CATARACTS

http://answers.yahoo.ca/question/index?qid=20071031022830AA6OPxC

Your computer monitor and TV could be dangerous. The dangerous types of monitors are CRTs, (Cathode Ray Tubes). The electrons hit a fluorescent screen to produce a picture. All CRT monitors give off radiation. Sit 29 inches or more from your screen.

One of the many health risks of monitor radiation is the forming of cataracts. Radiation, when projected onto the eyeball, causes heat. Long exposure can cause retinal detachment. Sensory nerve endings in the cornea and iris are very sensitive to temperature, even the smallest change. This minuscule heating of the iris by absorption of radiation is thought to be a major cause of cataracts.

Viewing your monitor in a dark room increases the risk of eye damage: your pupils enlarge to take in more light, and therefore more radiation. The very best way to protect yourself from the harmful rays that are produced, is to buy an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) monitor. LCDs give off less radiation.



LINKS

Cataracts & Vision - Carnosine and N-Acetylcarnosine Eye Drops
GOOGLE: Cataracts, alternative medicine
GOOGLE: cataracts, anti-oxidants



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