Diabetes Awareness Can Save Your Sight

MIDDLEBURY - November is National Diabetes Month. And while the disease affects many aspects of one’s overall health, one regional organization is looking out for those who may risk losing their sight to diabetes.

Middlebury-based Prevent Blindness Tri-State is helping to get the word out about the ties between diabetes and sight-related conditions. According to a recent release, nearly 21 million Americans – both adults and children – have diabetes.

In 2005, 1.5 million Americans aged 20 and older were diagnosed with the disease, and the American Diabetes Association estimated that related costs for medical care, disability and lost work total more than $130 billion annually.

That translates to about one out of every ten dollars spent on healthcare.

Alarmingly, there are 54 million who have pre-diabetes, meaning their blood glucose levels are higher than normal. Without effective treatment, those cases can eventually develop into diabetes.

Besides high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke, diabetes can also cause blindness. Diabetics are 60 percent more likely to develop cataracts and 40 percent more likely to develop glaucoma than those without diabetes. 

Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of new cases of blindness in adults. 

“New treatments and medications are constantly being developed to try and battle the disease, but unfortunately, there is still no cure,” said Kathryn Garre Ayars, President & CEO of Prevent Blindness Tri-state. “Saving sight must be made a national priority. Without dedication of resources and access to effective new treatments and therapies, diabetic eye disease will continue to take a devastating economic and social toll.” 

Diabetic retinopathy weakens the small blood vessels in the retina. Retinal blood vessels can break down, leak, or become blocked, impairing vision over time. 

Without treatment, it can result in permanent vision loss and in some cases, blindness.  Once vision is lost it can never be restored.

There are two stages of diabetic retinopathy. The first stage, nonproliferative retinopathy, occurs when the blood vessels in the retina are damaged and begin to leak into the eye. 

Once these blood vessels become weak, they could collapse. Almost all Type 1 diabetes patients will develop this form of diabetic retinopathy.

Without treatment, nonproliferative retinopathy can develop into the second stage, proliferative retinopathy. To compensate for the damaged blood vessels, new blood vessels begin to grow in the retina. 

Unfortunately, the new vessels are weak and leak blood, which can block vision, or cause scar tissue to grow which can eventually lead to a detached retina.

“Diabetic retinopathy is a very frightening disease because many people may have it and not even know it,” added Ms Garre-Ayars. “The only way you can tell for certain is to visit your eye doctor and get a complete exam.”

Prevent Blindness Tri-State also recommends that everyone take the following steps to protect their eyesight:

* See an eye doctor at least once a year if you have diabetes or if you are at high risk.

* Maintain a healthy weight – if you are overweight, even a modest weight loss can help prevent Type 2 diabetes.

* Increase your physical activity – exercising 30 minutes a day, five times a week can cut your risk of Type 2 diabetes by more than half. It is important to check with your doctor before starting an exercise program.

* Watch and control your blood sugar levels and blood pressure.

* All women who are pregnant or who are planning to become pregnant and have been diagnosed with diabetes should get a full, dilated eye exam.

* Quit smoking as that lifestyle change can help reduce your risk of developing diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma and cataracts.

For more information on diabetic eye disease, please call Prevent Blindness Tri-State at 800-850-2020 or visit www.preventblindnesstristate.org . Printed materials are available in both English and Spanish.

Since 1908, Prevent Blindness has worked to save sight and prevent vision loss by providing innovative vision screening services, information and education programs, and advocacy for people of all ages,  touching lives with a clear vision of the future.  Prevent Blindness Tri-State (PBTS) serves communities in Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey, with its headquarters in Middlebury, CT. 

PBTS is an affiliate of Prevent Blindness America, the country’s second-oldest national voluntary health organization.