Dear World
The following article is simply to bring more awareness about our eyes.
Some statistics are presented with some sensible questions for us all to consider.
At the end there is a practical step by step guide for Cleaning our Glasses, taken from the Simple Living Global – Back to Basics Program.
Then continue onto the comments where we will post anything that feels appropriate and relevant about our Eyes and Eye Care.
Dear World
We have World Sight Day today – 11 October 2018
An annual day of awareness held on the second Thursday of October, to focus global attention on blindness and vision impairment. (1)
This year’s call to action: Eye Care Everywhere
International Key Messages #WorldSightDay
253 million people blind or vision impaired – 2015
217 million – moderate – severe visual impairment
124 million – uncorrected refractive errors
65 million – cataract
1 BILLION people with near-vision impairment
75% of all blindness and MSVI is avoidable
89% vision impaired people live in low and middle-income countries
55% moderate or severely impaired people are women (1)
Refractive errors are vision problems that happen when the shape of the eye affects the focus.
Cause could be length of eyeball, changes in shape of cornea or aging of the lens.
4 Common Refractive Errors
Myopia nearsightedness – clear vision close up but blurry in the distance
Hyperopia farsightedness – clear vision in the distance but blurry close up
Presbyopia inability to focus close up as a result of ageing
Astigmatism focus problems caused by the cornea (2)
Universal Eye Health
World Health Organization Global Action Plan 2014 – 2019
The adoption of the global eye health action plan by the 66th World Health Assembly opens a new opportunity for Member States to progress with their efforts to prevent visual impairment and strengthen rehabilitation of the blind in their communities.
If the following 2 major causes of visual impairment were considered and priorities and control measures were implemented consistently across the world, by providing refractive services and offering cataract surgery to the people in need, two thirds of the visually impaired people could recover good sight:
42% uncorrected refractive errors
33% cataract (3)
Do we know how far we have come today with this WHO action plan?
Are we all aware this action plan is coming to an end – 2019?
Is anything missing and are we all understanding what is needed?
How do we ensure real action will be taken with our daily eye care?
Do we need to wait for the 67th world health meeting to take place?
Can we all start by doing our bit – however small that may seem?
Is there an individual responsibility that could make a difference?
Each of us are a part of the whole world so what we do, does matter.
On that note –
What if we just started with very simple basic eye care
What does this mean to us – the average jo on the street
What if getting our eyes tested regularly is a real start
What if we Focus on our eyes when washing our face
What if we realise how delicate the skin is around our eyes
What if we practice the closing of the eyelids from this blog
https://simplelivingglobal.com/closing-our-eyes/
What if we wipe our tears gently and not rough and hard
What if we are tender with ourselves removing eye make-up
What if we use eye drops to support our tired dry eyes
What if we switched to night mode on our phone screen
What if we adjust the brightness on our computer screen
What if we always use goggles for swimming to help our eyes
What if we use sunglasses to protect our eyes even if it’s not so sunny
What if we acknowledge the sensitivity of our eyes by honouring what they need in any given moment.
What if we deeply support our eyes with a real eye pillow from
https://www.featherlight.com.au/
What if we used an eye mask for those long journeys to heal our eyes
https://www.featherlight.com.au/store
What if we just make a stop in our day to breathe and feel our eyes
What if we made the effort to clean our glasses
What if we took super care of our contact lenses
What if we value and appreciate what our eyes give us
What if we used the palm of our hand and cupped it over our eyes
What if our eyes receive more clearly when we take more care
The following is taken from the Simple Living Global – Back to Basics Program
Cleaning our Glasses
Glasses, spectacles, sunnies, goggles, specs – all the same thing
Question – How are we taking care of our glasses
Who is interested in doing this task
Who can be bothered if we are Honest
Do we keep losing our glasses
Do we have more than one pair
Do we have a case to rest them in
Is the case the right size to fit them
How important are your glasses to you
Do you leave them anywhere with no regard
Do you leave them on your head and forget
Do you wear them with a string or chain around your neck
Have you ever Lost or forgotton where you put your glasses
What condition are your glasses in
How often do you clean your glasses
Do you value and appreciate your glasses like they are precious
Do you have a cleaning ritual for your glasses
Our eyes need support for whatever reason and so we get glasses
Our job is to look after them and take deep care because they are important.
This means that we value the job they are doing for us
Here is a super Simple way that we can bring into our day, if we have glasses.
Make a point of cleaning them everyday
Trot down to the spectacle shop – buy few cloths and spray
Get a string if you feel it would support you to keep them close
Ask for a glasses case if you do not have one
Make sure you place a spare cloth in your glasses case
Whilst you are in the shop – check your prescription is up to date
If not, make it a Priority to get your eyes tested – super important
Let’s Start –
Choose a time where you have a moment to Stop and pause
Have your spray and cloth next to you
Sit down – take the time to Gently open the case
Hold the glasses without touching the lens
Be aware of how you hold them – use your fingertips
Best place is the bridge bit for the nose
Use your thumb and finger for holding
Be delicate and tender with this process
Focus on the task in hand and nothing else
Pick spray up and squirt one lens on both sides
Use the cloth and wipe with anti-clockwise motion
Move to another part of the cloth that is dry
Continue wiping super Gently and with care
Say in your mind as you do this job –
“It is my intention to clean these glasses to support me to see and receive Truth”
Repeat with the other lens taking the same deep care
If they are mega dirty, then do both sides again
At the end, wipe the nose bit and the frame all over
Leave the cloth out to dry – hang it over the spray bottle
Make sure the lenses are not touched
Check them out and see and feel the difference
Sparkly clean means things will be seen with more clarity
A new sharper Focus going forward now
When not in use – store them in their home
Clean out the home – the case they live in
This is just as important
Make sure cloths are washed and rinsed regular
Imagine doing this simple task everyday just to support you
What an incredible basic gift
Out and about or at work – no spray
No problemo – just breathe gently on each lens then wipe away
Use the spare cloth you carry in your case
Job done and fresh clean glasses everyday
Now others get to really truly see your eyes
If your eyes could speak they would say THANK YOU.
This publication is ©Copyright and the Moral Rights of the Author, Bina Pattel and Simple Living Global are asserted. Other than for the purposes of and subject to the conditions prescribed under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 as amended, no part of this work may in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, microcopying, photocopying, recording or otherwise) be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted without prior written permission. Inquiries should be addressed to Simple Living Global – info@simplelivingglobal.com.
References
(1) World Sight Day 2018. International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness. Retrieved October 10, 2018 from
https://www.iapb.org/advocacy/world-sight-day/
(2) (n.d). Refractive Errors. Medline Plus. Retrieved October 10, 2018 from
https://medlineplus.gov/refractiveerrors.html
(3) (2013). Universal Eye Health A Global Action Plan 2014 – 2019. World Health Organization. Retrieved October 9, 2018 from
http://www.who.int/blindness/AP2014_19_English.pdf?ua=1
Comments 15
This is a very informative post – thank you very much Simple Living Global.
I most certainly will give your tips about how to clean your glasses a go.
I am aged 40 and have been wearing glasses full-time, since the age of 4. I had always cleaned my glasses out of necessity, so at the point where they were obviously dirty.
Then I became friends with someone who pointed out that my glasses were always dirty. Whilst I was shocked by this, as I was unaware, it did change something in me as over the years, I have become more aware of my glasses being dirty much sooner than I used to.
There have been many times where I have sat wearing my glasses and have noticed that they are dirty and then taken action straight away to clean them.
In the past this really would not have come to my attention and I know that my friend sharing what they did made a huge difference.
I take much more care of my glasses now, including placing them in their case before I go to sleep at night. Again something that I never used to do.
I had not reflected much before on the statistics around eye problems.
It is mind boggling to think of how many of us live with vision or eye issues, and to reflect on that incredible statistic that 75% of blindness and ‘moderate to severe visual impairment’ is avoidable, particularly when you think of how debilitating eye and sight issues can be to daily life.
This blog really brings your awareness to the eyes and what we can be doing to take care of them. Given that 75% avoidability statistic, it feels like this blog would be fantastic reading for school-aged kids and I will certainly be showing it to my children, so they have access to this information and the opportunity to build eye care in to their foundation as they grow up.
I heard recently that many women apply eye cream way too liberally and too close to the delicate eye tissue.
Apparently, plastic surgeons doing facelifts tell of being able, during surgery, to scoop out the cream that is pooled in that area, unabsorbed. I have noticed myself that if I put eye cream too close to the eye or if I use even a tiny bit too much, it makes my tear ducts swell up. I have learned to go super-light in both quantity and touch.
And I can feel from reading the glasses cleaning section above, how in taking care of your eyes, you can really go to town on the details – anything and everything that has to do with these precious bits of the body.
It is amazing to me, how reading a single blog, can inspire a greater level of enquiry, expression, reflection and care on such an overlooked and important subject. Thank you for this, Simple Living Global.
I can feel my sunglasses are not taken care of to the standard of care this blog invites.
It is interesting how clear that is to me. It goes to show how aware we are of our standards in life – it feels like we know exactly where we are letting things slide or drift.
Sometimes all it takes is the reflection of someone else walking the walk to prompt us to step up.
The Conversation – 24th September 2019
Third of children who need glasses aren’t wearing them.
https://theconversation.com/third-of-children-who-need-glasses-arent-wearing-them-and-this-may-be-impacting-their-academic-social-and-emotional-learning-121161
It’s a problem many teachers are familiar with, a student apparently struggling in class, but in fact just suffering from something that’s easily fixed – vision problems – with an inexpensive pair of glasses.
It’s estimated that more than 3.4 million children aged four to sixteen in the UK have been diagnosed with a vision problem. Indeed, vision screenings are carried out routinely in schools by the NHS and glasses are free.
Approximately 15% of students fail the screening and a third do not obtain the glasses needed, which can have an impact on their reading and mathematics achievement. But the NHS rules prevent schools from receiving the results of the screening which instead go into letters sent to students’ homes.
Research shows that in poorer, high-poverty families, or those where parents don’t read English, getting glasses isn’t always a priority. Research in China and the US highlights that disadvantaged children are more likely to experience vision problems and less likely to receive the treatment and eyeglasses they need and also suggests that interventions aren’t always implemented by schools in the way that’s intended.
A new project has been created where 100 schools will take part in a study of children in a disadvantaged multi-ethnic community that need glasses with the aim of improving their academic, social and emotional learning long term and will see reception year children participate in vision screenings and academic achievement assessments. In half the schools, those who fail the eye assessment will be given glasses. In the other schools, business-as-usual procedures will be followed in that, parents will receive a letter.
More than one in ten children are estimated to have an undiagnosed common vision problem that affects their learning and development. Yet a quarter of four-to sixteen year olds have never been taken for a vision assessment by their parents – many of whom say they waited for their child to show certain behaviours, such as sitting too close to the television, before taking them for a vision assessment.
This is obviously a serious problem for our children but I can’t quite understand why only half of the schools who fail the assessment will be given glasses while the other half are left at the mercy of their parents in ensuring they get their glasses if needed.
Recently, I have had to start to wear glasses so I know the benefit they do bring.
If a pair of glasses is going to make such a difference to their academic, social and emotional long-term learning, then why aren’t all children given them if required?
Author
I have been a regular at my local opticians and it is interesting to see what goes on.
One thing I have clocked over the recent years is how busy it is and yesterday confirmed its gone up a few more notches to an almost frenzy state.
Loads of staff and heaps of customers. Waiting area clearly not big enough now and things constantly going wrong with customers not happy.
My take is that these guys had no idea how busy this business would get when they originally purchased the franchise of a famous named UK opticians.
This is an industry where business is booming but I doubt any of us would stop and ask the question WHY and HOW has it got to this point?
The high turnover of staff also is speaking volumes but for the purposes of this comment it is not needed here.
Back to WHY – waiting around for long periods on 3 occasions without staring at my mobile phone screen or flicking some inhouse magazine, I was asking myself WHY on earth is this place so so busy with people of all backgrounds and ages wanting the services. You can walk in anytime of day and its full on, so it is telling me there is a huge demand and these are the suppliers doing their best to deliver what we want.
Reading this blog, we are left in no doubt that our eyesight as a race of beings is failing us but WHY?
WHY are more of us short or long sighted or having some form of eye problem or needing glasses for this or that?
What is it about us that needs correction with what we see?
What are we actually seeing when we are receiving light – which is really what we do and then we put it through our own filtering system and see what we want to see.
What if how we internally ‘see’ ourselves, others and the world actually has an effect on how we then see externally? In other words, our view inside us then is what we cast out there and it reflects back to us.
What if we don’t truly want to receive what we are really seeing out there and so we have a way to shut down from that as if we did stay totally open then it would mean our awareness would be heightened and perhaps that is something we do not really want?
What if having more awareness would mean we would need to take more responsibility and we simply are not ready to give up the comfort and the way we currently live which is more about irresponsible living?
What if all this is about not wanting to have a deep connection with our body because if we did we would be able to feel everything and it is this awareness we don’t really want?
AND then what if our vision is all about having our awareness confirmed back to us?
All I know is SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT as our opticians are now looking like the A&E departments – masses turning up and the staff are not able to cope with the high volume of traffic which seems to be getting worse.
There has to be another way and it feels like we are not looking at what the root cause might be when it comes to vision and our eyes, but instead going for the comfortable option which is a solution to fix us and if it fails, we then demand another solution but never do we stop and consider the how and why.
Thank you for this blog Simple Living Global – cleaning my glasses is now a pleasure to complete.
I am 56 now and for about 50 of those years I have never needed to wear glasses.
Even on a routine medical for driving I had when I was 55, I passed my eyesight test so I would have probably carried on ignoring the failing eyesight except I struggled to read any small print, especially if the lighting was not that good.
So a couple of years ago, aged 54, I ventured into a well-known opticians and had some glasses made for me.
At first, my self-imposed street cred suffered but once I had worn the glasses for the purpose they were intended, my attitude towards them changed.
Amazingly enough I can now read the small print with these glasses and I now wear them with a sense of pride.
Having had sunglasses for most of my life and only cleaned them when I couldn’t actually see out of them, I think I would have carried on this time honoured tradition and treated my new glasses in this same way but reading this blog, has inspired in me, a new found care and approach to something I would have paid very little attention to.
And it is not just the cleaning of the glasses. It is also taking the care to take them out of the case and put them back in gently. It is making sure they are to hand and they are used even if for a short while. It is treating them with respect because their only job is to help our eyes.
This blog has shown me that it is OK to care for our glasses in this way and, even more so, that we SHOULD care for our glasses in this way.
After all, if our glasses are not clean and we can’t see out of them, are we trying to avoid seeing the world or are we trying to avoid the world from seeing us?
i newspaper – 11 July 2020
22% Britons reported that their eyesight had become noticeably worse since March.
33% believe that the problems stem from spending more time in front of the TV and on computer screens during lockdown.
This new study was carried out by the College of Optometrists on 2,000 people.
So here we have a snapshot – call it a microcosm of how we have changed our daily work routine whilst being at home and it has led to poor vision.
Common sense would tell us that something is not right if we are on screen time for excessive hours. Our eyes need rest and the light that is emitted from any screen is not natural.
The majority and that means the masses will simply get whatever solution is needed – new prescription lenses or the start of wearing glasses and that will be the end of it.
What if we become wise for one moment, question this and ponder deeply on why we now have this new condition that could continue to get worse?
What if our new habits may lead to even more eyesight deterioration?
What if our excess TV watching – in between and after work is contributing to this?
What if our constant need to check things on social media is another contributory factor?
What if our eyes are in need of deep rest to rejuvenate, but we seem to have it all upside down and think whilst we are off work and having to stay indoors, we may as well stay up late and that late keeps getting later?
What if we are choosing other forms of self medication instead of a basic one called “napping” where our eyes get some form of rest as we close our eyes to dis-connect from the outer world and all its distractions?
A wise move would be to read our blogs in the sleep category on this website, as this is important if we want to ensure that our eyes do not continue to get worse.
https://simplelivingglobal.com/category/sleep/
Mail Online – 27 August 2021
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9934377/Alert-lenses-make-BLIND-Patients-warned-implants-damage-corneas.html
Dear World
Today is the 14th October which is WORLD SIGHT DAY.
A news story worthy of a comment about eye implants. Thousands of British people have had a so-called ‘phakic’ lens operation to correct their vision and are now at risk of going blind after failing to attend regular check-ups.
This is a popular alternative for patients with poorer eyesight, deemed unsuitable for laser eye surgery.
However, the lens can cause irreparable internal damage that may require a cornea transplant and lead to sight loss. Note – there are no symptoms when the damage starts to occur.
The lense sits between the cornea and the iris. They are different to those used for cataract surgery. Protective cells can be destroyed if the lense rubs against the inner surface of the cornea. This is why customers need regular checks to see if the cell count falls to concerning levels. These checks are not done in a routine eye test at the opticians. It requires a specialist that has a specular microscope to perform a cell count.
We could stop and wake up that this is serious and we could also ask what are we willing to do to get things fixed. In other words, find a solution and not really consider the side effects, as this is one such side effect, albeit a super serious one.
Most of us would be scared to lose our sight and understandably so.
But what gets into us when we seek out these types of “fix me’ solutions and jump on the bandwagon to find out years later, like the guy mentioned in the news story that has to change his job, as he can no longer be a driver and he is waiting to have a corneal graft. He had the lenses fitted 17 years ago and now has eye problems.
We are all quick to blame the suppliers and we want to more than monetary compensation – we want to stop them from ever trading again. We are angry how they profited from us and it goes on and on and we could apply this to anything.
But what if we just look at it from another angle. We want cosmetic surgery (let’s be honest, that is what this is) to fix what we do not like and in this case it is our poor eyesight. Have we ever considered why we have poor eyesight and does it have anything to do with how we are living? In other words, the choices we are making.
What is it in the world when we look out that we don’t want to see, don’t like seeing or just do not want to receive that image, so to speak?
It is time to ask other types of questions, as we never want to look within as we are too busy going outside of us with the blame, but surely we created everything in the first place. We did not come in with poor eyesight, but things happened and one day we got diagnosed with eye problems and were offered an alternative or we went out to seek a solution to fix the problem but we did not question what the root cause may be.
This is a very interesting comment Simple Living Global, very relatable.
Over 10 years ago, I had a situation where I was wearing contact lenses on a daily basis. Getting lazy and having late nights meant sometimes I fell asleep with them in. Whilst that is one of the big NOs of wearing contact lenses – we all think we can get away with it, but we don’t.
I had a wake up call, as one day I could barely see. It was so serious that I had to make my way to the eye hospital and travel on the underground to another part of the town where I live. What was scary was that I could hardly see and it was impossible to ignore what I had done to myself due to vanity. Not even being able to read the underground map was what I was being faced with and that was a necessary part of my journey.
The medics established that I had an eye infection.
Not long after that I stopped wearing contact lenses and have returned to wearing glasses. The reason for the lenses was because I had been wearing glasses since the age of 4 and had all of these thoughts that I was unattractive with them, ugly, feeling hurt by being called ‘four eyes’ as a child, etc.
However today, call me what you like – I would much rather wear glasses that support my eyes rather than wear contact lenses to look good.
Going back to what you say Simple Living Global about ‘Have we ever considered why we have poor eyesight and does it have anything to do with how we are living?’ – Why do we not consider this and ask these types of questions?
Growing up what if my approach to life would have been much different if this question had been presented? Not to blame but we do have to ask – why is it that we are not asked questions like this when we have something not working well in our body?
Why do we not have this type of questioning as a normal part of living human life?
As you say Simple Living Global, we look for the next fix and solution rather than going within to establish why we are where we are.
What if there is so much more that we could learn about ourselves and human life if we asked the question WHY? Not to beat ourselves up, but with an openness and curiosity?
What if simply asking the questions would allow us to see more?
What I can say is that I know that I have not wanted to see life how it truly is and rather have painted rose coloured glasses over what I don’t want to see. To me it would then make sense that I would need to wear glasses from a young age due to short sightedness, as I have not wanted to see what is right under my nose.
Interestingly enough this short sightedness runs in my family and so is it genetics or is it that as a family some of us have also not wanted to see life how it truly is and instead have preferred to live a lie?
University College London – 23 September 2022
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2022/sep/reusable-contact-lenses-more-triple-risk-rare-preventable-eye-infection
Wearing re-usable contact lenses more than triples the risk of rare preventable eye infection, according to a new study led by UCL and Moorfields Eye Hospital researchers. The risk was 3.8 times more.
The study identifies multiple factors that increase the risk of Acanthamoeba Keratitis (AK) including reusing lenses or wearing them overnight or in the shower.
300 million people across the world wear contact lenses.
Contact lens use is now the leading cause of microbial keratitis in patients with otherwise healthy eyes in countries in the global north.
90% of AK cases are associated with avoidable risks. AK causes the front surface of the eye, the cornea to become painful and inflamed, due to infection by Acanthamoeba, a cyst-forming microorganism. The most severely affected patients (quarter of the total) end up with less than 25% of vision or become blind following the disease and face prolonged treatment.
25% affected require corneal transplants to treat the disease or restore vision.
A recent study led by Professor Dart found that AK is increasing in prevalence in the UK.
Many people buy their lenses online without speaking to a health professional and Professor Dart says “contact lens packaging should include information on lens safety and risk avoidance, even as simple as ‘no water’ stickers on each case”.
Wearing lens overnight increased the odds of AK by 3.9 times.
Showering with lenses increased odds of AK by 3.3 times.
Among daily disposable wearers, reusing their lenses increased their infection risk.
Having had a recent contact lens check with a health professional reduced the risk.
UPI Health News – 23 February 2023
https://www.upi.com/Health_News/2023/02/23/dry-eye-new-treatments/8381676656612/
20 million people in the United States suffer from various forms of dry eye disease.
Experts say that soon there will be expanded options to treat symptoms.
These include prescription eyedrops that target the underlying causes of the disorder, as well as drops to relive its most troubling symptoms, such as eye redness and itchiness.
Intense pulsed light therapy is also being used, which uses gentle pulses of light to target the skin around the eyes, reducing inflammation of the eyelids and enabling tear production.
With more choices, eye care practitioners expect patients to see a reduction in treatment costs, which can be as high as $400 per month for some prescription drugs, depending on insurance.
“The term ‘dry eye disease’ is complex because dry eye is actually one of many ocular surface disorders that have similar, overlapping symptoms. The redness from dry eye can be severe enough that sufferers experience self-esteem issues, for cosmetic reasons.”
Dr. Laura M Periman – Permian Eye Institute, Seattle.
James Prudden, an editor in his 60s told UPI that he developed dry eye after starting treatment for high blood pressure 4 years ago.
Contact lens wear and laser vision correction can cause dry eye.
Dry eye is the number 1 complaint that brings patients to an eye doctor.
Many suffer in silence, incorrectly assuming that it is just a normal part of ageing and that nothing much can be done.
For many, the cost of treatment often means they go without, so it is often untreated or under treated.
University of Gothenburg – 7 September 2023
https://www.gu.se/en/news/older-people-may-have-glaucoma-without-realizing-it
Older people may have glaucoma without realizing it, according to a new study by the University of Gothenburg.
5% of 70 year olds were found to have glaucoma and half of those were unaware that they had the disease.
Glaucoma is a common eye disease that damages the optic nerve and thereby the field of vision. In the most serious cases, glaucoma can lead to blindness.
Treatment is daily eye drops that lower the pressure in the eye and slow down the damage to the optic nerve.
People with glaucoma reported that it was harder to climb stairs, see curbs in the evening and notice things in the peripheral vision. This means that people with glaucoma may avoid visiting others, going to restaurants or parties and instead stay at home. They lose their independence and may feel frustrated about it.
The study confirmed that glaucoma often does not initially involve a loss of visual acuity, which may make it harder to detect the disease.
Ophthalmology Times – 6 November 2023
https://www.ophthalmologytimes.com/view/aao-2023-visual-field-defects-linked-to-higher-risk-of-car-crashes
Researchers at the University of Western Australia presented at the AAO – American Academy of Ophthalmology that their study found specific types of defects in an older person’s field of vision are associated with a increased risk of car crashes.
Generally, in the United States drivers are required to have 20/40 vision or better in at least 1 eye to drive unrestricted. Other studies suggest that other measures of vision, such as visual field are as important as how well a person sees on the “Big E chart.”
The eye chart tests our ability to see distant objects clearly while the visual field is how wide we can see when staring straight ahead. The key difference explains why a wide field of vision allows drivers to see enough details on either side of a car while still focusing on the road ahead of them.
This was the first population based investigation to compare a largescale ophthalmic database of visual fields for older adults with police-reported crash, licensing and hospital morbidity data.
Data was analysed for over 31,000 drivers and evaluated over 29 years.
Results confirmed that the area of vision affected and the severity, contributed significantly to crash risk:
84% increase in odds of a car crash where there has been visual field loss of any sort in both eyes.
Severe vision loss in any quadrant increased the chances of an accident.
Central vision loss in either eye was not associated with an increase in car crash incident.
University College London – 8 March 2024
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2024/mar/children-lazy-eye-are-increased-risk-serious-disease-adulthood
Adults who had amblyopia (lazy eye) in childhood are more likely to experience hypertension, obesity and metabolic syndrome in adulthood, as well as an increased risk of heart attack, according to a new study led by UCL researchers.
Amblyopia is when the vision in one eye does not develop properly and can be triggered by a squint or being long-sighted.
Data was analysed from 126,000 participants aged 40 to 69 who had undergone ocular examination.
From the 3,238 participants who reported having a ‘lazy eye’ as a child, 82.2% had persistent reduced vision in one eye as an adult.
The findings showed that participants with amblyopia as a child had
29% higher odds of developing Diabetes
25% higher odds of having High Blood Pressure
16% higher odds of having Obesity
They were also at increased risk of heart attack – even when other risk factors for these conditions were taken into account.
The increased risk of health problems was found not only among those whose vision problems persisted but also to some extent in participants who had had amblyopia as a child and 20/20 vision as an adult.
“Amblyopia is an eye condition affecting up to 4 in 100 children.
The large numbers of affected children and their families, may want to think of our findings as an extra incentive for trying to achieve healthy lifestyles from childhood.”
Professor Jugnoo Rahi – UCL Institute of Ophthalmology and Great Ormond Street Hospital – Institute for Child Health
The Guardian – 18 May 2024
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/article/2024/may/18/eye-tattooing-experts-warn-about-risks-of-colour-changing-surgery
EYE-TATTOOING
Experts warn about risks of colour-changing surgery.
Concerns raised as social media video influencers promote pigment-injection procedure as the latest cosmetic trend.
Problems can emerge within months following eye tattooing surgery, with potential complications including vision loss and blindness.
The procedure, known as keratopigmentation, is a recent development and can be used for therapeutic purposes to improve the appearance of eyes.
It is becoming a popular aesthetic trend where influencers are undergoing surgery to permanently change their eye colour – often from brown to blue or green.
The procedure is not available for purely cosmetic reasons in the UK and those seeking eye tattoos tend to go abroad.
“These are people that have healthy eyes, they have no problems with their eyes and then they go and have a procedure for (cosmetic reasons) that could have huge long-term implications with regards to eye health and vision that will affect them for the rest of their lives.”
Alex Day – Consultant Eye Surgeon and Ophthalmologist, Moorfields Private Eye Hospital, London
Keratopigmentation typically involves the patient given a local anaesthetic before a surgeon makes a cut in their cornea using a laser or needle. This creates a tiny pocket into which pigments are injected. These pigments mask the natural colour of the iris that is normally visible through the transparent cornea, resulting in a apparent colour change.
It is not the first time concerns have been raised over eye tattooing.
January 2024
The American Academy of Ophthalmology issued warnings over keratopigmentation and another eye-colour-changing technique, known as iris implant surgery, noting the procedures carry serious risks for vision loss and complications.
Iris implants have been FDA approved for patients who are missing part or all of their iris, the coloured part of the eye, due to injury or a birth defect.
https://www.aao.org/newsroom/news-releases/detail/academy-issues-warning-on-eye-color-procedures
For keratopigmentation, these include:
• Light Sensitivity
• Damage to the Cornea that could result in Vision Loss
• Infections
• Leakage of the dye into the eye
• Reactions to the dye resulting in Inflammation
“Don’t think that these surgeries carry no risk. No surgery is free of risk.
With purely cosmetic surgeries on the eye, it is just not worth the risk when it comes to your good vision.”
JoAnn Giaconi, MD – American Academy of Ophthalmology
The American Academy of Ophthalmology is the world’s largest association of eye physicians and surgeons. A global community of 32,000 medical doctors that set the standards for ophthalmic education.
Day said there have also been reports of colour touch-ups being needed, adding that people who wish to change the colour of their eyes are better off using coloured contact lenses.
However, he said it was important these are prescribed and dispensed by a contact lens practitioner who has examined the individual, rather than being bought online.
“No surgery that aims to change the colour of healthy eyes has been shown to be safe. No one should risk their vision by undergoing surgery to change their eye colour.”
Alex Day – Consultant Eye Surgeon and Ophthalmologist, Moorfields Private Eye Hospital, London
The warnings come as the first world congress devoted to keratopigmentation is scheduled this month in Spain.