Your Eye Health: Diabetes

senior man with glucometer checking blood sugar level at home

If you or a loved one has been recently diagnosed with diabetes, you may be just now starting to realize how this disease can affect all aspects of a person’s life and how it can damage health in several different ways. For instance, people with diabetes are susceptible to many serious eye problems.

When to see a doctor

You should let your eye doctor know if you have diabetes so that he or she can help monitor changes in your vision and perform tests at each visit to check your eye health. If you notice sudden blurred vision, black spots or “holes” in your vision, or flashes of light, see a doctor immediately.

Ways diabetes can affect the eyes

High blood sugar can cause a variety of vision problems:• Blurry vision. Your eyes’ lenses may swell, which can make it difficult to see clearly. This may be caused by high blood sugar, and it may start to go away once your blood sugar is regulated (although it may take a few months before your vision gets fully back to normal). Even if you think your blurry vision was caused by a spike in your blood sugar, you should still mention this to your doctor.• Glaucoma. This results when fluid builds up in the eye and causes pressure, which damages the eye and affects how well you see.• Cataracts. These are very commonly found in older people. However, people with diabetes often get them earlier in life than the average person, and they can become serious very quickly. Cataracts make it difficult to see by clouding the eye lens.• Retinopathy. This occurs when blood vessels in the retina – the group of cells in the back of the eye – are damaged, and it can cause blindness. The chances of getting retinopathy are lowered when blood sugar is kept under control.Diabetes is the primary cause of blindness in adults. Let the staff at The Eye Care Institute in Louisville, KY, know that you have diabetes and make regular visits so that they can become a part of your diabetes-care team. Call (502) 589-1500 to make an appointment today!