Glaucoma Awareness Month
According to the Glaucoma Research Foundation, January is Glaucoma Awareness Month. Because glaucoma affects over 4 million Americans and nearly 70 million people worldwide and experts estimate that half don't even know it yet, we wanted to take a closer look at what glaucoma is and what can be done to prevent or detect it.
Glaucoma, the "sneak thief of sight" (since there are no symptoms and once vision is lost, it’s permanent), is the 2nd leading cause of blindness in the world according to the World Health Organization, and is the leading cause of blindness among African American and Latino populations. Because early detection and careful, lifelong treatment can maintain vision in most people, we wanted to highlight one of the best things you and your loved ones can do: regular eye exams. Here are good rules of thumb for different age ranges:
- Before age 40, every 2-4 years
- From age 40-54, every 1-3 years
- From age 55-64, every 1-2 years
- After age 65, every 6-12 months
In addition, it is recommended to maintain a healthy lifestyle consisting of a balanced diet as well as a regular program of moderate exercise (which has been shown in studies to have an IOP, or "intraocular pressure," lowering effect, which can prevent damage to the optic nerve). For more information about glaucoma, visit www.glaucoma.org. And, for helpful informational videos, click here.