Sugar isn’t just something you put into your food and drink to make them sweeter; it’s a fuel for your body’s cells to give you energy.
This occurs through the use of blood glucose (or blood sugar) in your bloodstream. A hormone called insulin, which is produced in your pancreas, regulates the amount of glucose you have. Too much blood sugar makes you hyperglycemic and increases your risk of diabetes.
This illness can be asymptomatic for years, but leaving it untreated will damage nearly every organ in your body, leading to cardiovascular, renal, brain, pancreatic, digestive, and dental diseases. Your eyes can also suffer damage due to a condition known as diabetic retinopathy.
To understand how it occurs, we explore what diabetes does to the body, what happens in the eyes, and what you can do to prevent or treat it.
At the Maryland Vision Center, our team, led by board-certified ophthalmologist and eye surgeon Sunil Thadani, MD, help patients in the Frederick, Maryland, area access the eye care they need.
While there are multiple types of diabetes, Type 2 or diabetes mellitus is the one up to 95% of people dealing with the disease have. Blood sugar is derived from the carbohydrates in your diet. Usually, the glucose that comes from them is taken by the cells that need it in your blood. Insulin helps remove excess glucose from your body.
To become hyperglycemic, your body is either overloaded with more blood glucose than the insulin can handle, or it becomes resistant to the hormone. This occurs in people with a family history of the disease, those who are overweight, and people who eat high-carb diets.
Being over 45, being inactive, having high blood pressure, and having high cholesterol increase your risk. Related conditions like prediabetes or gestational diabetes also increase the chances of Type 2 diabetes.
The excess glucose that remains in your body can damage the blood vessels and nerves in several organs, including your eyes. It weakens the blood vessels that nourish your retina, the part of your eye that allows you to see objects in front of you with precise detail. This process occurs in two stages:
This is the early stage, when leakage from blood vessels into the retina begins. The damaged blood vessels eventually close off as they attempt to repair themselves.
When sufficient damage has occurred, it allows weaker, abnormal blood vessels to form, leading to detached retinas and blindness.
Symptoms of diabetic retinopathy include distorted or blurred vision, night blindness, color blindness, blind spots, defects in your visual field, vision loss, and eye floaters (usually in the form of streaks).
Dilated eye exams are the best way to diagnose this eye disease. Dilating the eyes widens the pupils and allows for a better examination of what’s happening inside. When we confirm damage that indicates retinopathy, treatment varies depending on the stage you’re at.
We typically manage the non-proliferative stage with watchful waiting and improved diabetes management. In contrast, we can treat the proliferative stage with injections (anti-VEGF shots), laser procedures such as photocoagulation, and vitrectomy.
The best way to avoid this condition is to make lifestyle and dietary changes to lower blood glucose levels. Losing weight, eating a balanced diet, and getting more regular exercise can all lower your risk of diabetes and the complications that come with it.
Diabetic retinopathy can be life-changing if not treated promptly, so regular eye exams, the right treatments, and an improved lifestyle can make the difference in managing it effectively. To confirm and treat issues with this eye disease, make an appointment with us at the Maryland Vision Center today.
