November is National Diabetes Awareness Month. Diabetes is a disease in which the body is not able to regulate its sugar levels because of defects in insulin output or recognition. Here are some staggering statistics from the American Diabetes Association:
- 25.8 million children and adults in the United States have diabetes. That’s 8.3% of the population!
- Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness among adults 20-74 years old.
- There are approximately 7 million undiagnosed cases of diabetes and 79 million people with “prediabetes.”
Diabetes is a disease that affects the smallest blood vessels throughout the body, including the kidneys, limbs, and eyes. If the disease is severe enough, it can cause the blood vessels to become leaky, and in the eye this results in diabetic retinopathy. Diabetic retinopathy can cause swelling and other complications that can lead to blurred or reduced vision. If gone untreated, diabetic retinopathy can result in permanent vision loss.
A yearly dilated eye examination is crucial in maintaining good eye health, especially if you are diabetic. Dilating the eyes allows your eye doctor to see the small blood vessels in the retina, and determine if they are leaking or not. Nowhere else in the body can these blood vessels be viewed so easily. Chances are, if they are leaking in the retina, they could be leaking elsewhere. A dilated eye examination can be a good indicator of how well your blood sugar is being regulated.
If you are one of the many individuals dealing with diabetes, please make it a priority to visit your eye care specialist for an annual dilated eye examination. For more information on diabetes, please visit these websites: the American Optometric Association at www.aoa.org and the American Diabetes Association at www.diabetes.org.