Donation Distributions for Year 2

Thank you everyone for a marvelous second year in business.

Each anniversary, I tally up the requests from all your exams (you were asked to pick one of the deserving non-profits below during your check-in) and write out checks for the wonderful non-profit organizations that reside here in Portland.

Here's how you wanted your contributions distributed:

10.90% Mercy Corps

11.45% Sustainable Northwest

14.25% Oregon Public Broadcasting

16.76% Oregon Food Bank

46.65% None chosen - Last year, I chose to give this category of donations to SaveDarfur.org to aid in the fight against the horrific genocide taking place there. There have been talks between warring parties and internationally, but the suffering continues so I will donate half of this year's sum to SaveDarfur.org and the rest will be distributed proportionally to the other nonprofits on the list.

Thank you for being a part of my business and it's efforts to give back to the local and global community. Your feedback on this program has been motivating and much appreciated.

Hope you're all enjoying the summer.

Yours,
Summy

Review of Some 'Non-Conventional' Eye Therapies

Some of my patients have asked me about therapies or programs they have heard advertised that claim to fix vision problems with exercises or nutrients.

I am an optometrist who believes that the solution to vision problems is more than a formula of powers to be ground into a plastic lens that you’re now obligated to wear.

On that note, there are a lot of claims out there on how to cure disease, erase the need for prescriptive eyewear and resolve eye strain. Here’s the scientific info on some of them.

• The Bates Method: This is a series of exercises designed by Dr. William Hortio Bates published in his book, “Perfect Sight Without Glasses” claiming to give just that.

I attended an introductory lecture on this method a few years ago and did my best to hear past the accusations from the lecturer that optometrists had business to gain by over-correcting their patients and encourage vision deterioration. (We don’t do that. Really.) I do believe that strain from how we live today : computers for hours, driving long distances, television, etc tighten our muscles, dry our eyes, and discourage using peripheral vision and perception skills. Everything we are aware of is straight ahead and fine detail and our unused muscles and perceptive skills don’t get exercised. Movement is important – focusing from distance to near, looking from side to side, rolling your eyes, blinking, etc can keep us from getting locked up and from missing what’s around us.

The Bates Method though, has never proved to be effective in the scientific community. The method actually advises staring at the sun (a Huge No-No, by the way), claiming this helps the eye relax. Solar burns can be permanent resulting in a black spot right in the center of your vision. The heavily advertised “See Clearly Method” was based on these exercises and were taken off the market in 2006 because of a fraud lawsuit.

• Diet: Nutraceuticals (vitamins, minerals, herbs, amino acids, extracts) are regulated by the FDA as foods rather than drugs. That means they have not had to pass the same safety and efficacy tests with the FDA that drugs do. Unfortunately, that means there isn’t published evidence of the efficacy of nutraceuticals.

According to the AREDS study, high dose antioxidants have shown to lower the risk of developing vision loss caused by advanced age-related macular degeneration.

An antioxidant called N-acetyl-carnosine holds promise as an eyedrop to treat cataracts. In a study, 90% of treated eyes showed improved vision at six months. Honey in the eye or eating raw garlic did not, however.

• Acupuncture: This well-established practice can alter chemical release and regulate blood flow and has been used to treat dry eye, near-sightedness, eye turns, inflammation, cataracts and other ocular diseases. Again, there have not been large-scale scientific studies to examine the effectiveness of acupuncture. This is an area of wellness that I intend to investigate and share my experience and research with you in a future blog entry.

Obviously what needs to happen is more research on how these ‘non-conventional’ treatments work, if they work. Unfortunately out of the 17 schools of Optometry in the US, only 4 contain any education on these methods in their curriculum. With 36% of adults using alternative medicine, according to a survey by the National Institues of Health, there needs to be a significantly better meeting of the minds among philosophies of eye care.

BTW - the picture is of an oculizer designed in the early 1900's using a crank and pulley system to rotate the soft rubber eyecups while a plunger pokes the eye and a vacuum sucks at them. It didn't prove effective to exist today.

Toast to Healthy Eyes!

With recent science, we know that regular consumption of red wine (that means one to two glasses a day) can counter-balance fatty diets, leading to overall better health. Good news is that eyes can also benefit from the antioxidants shown to decrease risk of heart disease and certain forms of cancer.

Red wine is one of the most readily available sources of an antioxidant called resveratrol found in plants which has shown to fight inflammation, inhibit oxidation of some cells and preserve cell vitality. You can find resveratrol in berries, nuts and grape juice, too for those of you, who like me, aren't big fans of vino. Red wine happens to contain about twice the antioxidants than the alternatives though and is absorbed more easily by the body.

How does red wine help our vision (at least in the long run :) )?

• Cataracts: After following non-drinkers and moderate drinkers for five years who were age appropriate for cataracts, 32.2% of non-drinkers developed cataracts vs 13% of drinkers.
  

• Age-related macular degeneration (AMD): In addition to resveratrol, red grape skins show high concentrations of carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin, both proven in clinical studies to combat AMD. A strong negative association between AMD incidence and moderate red wine consumption has been demonstrated. New research also suggests that resveratrol may have value in treatment and management of the disease in more advanced stages by inhibiting new vessel growth. This vessel growth is a sign of progression of AMD to the wet, more debilitating stage.

• Cornea: An enzyme that plays a role in recurrent corneal erosion (in which the surface of the cornea occasionally sloughs off resulting in great discomfort and vision loss) can be suppressed with resveratrol.

Though many of you welcome the encouragement to walk down the wine aisle after the vitamin aisle, remember : don't drink too much! Moderation is key because ironically, heart disease, cancer and liver disease can become more of a risk when you overdrink.

So, on that note, if anyone has any recommendations for good wine, I'd appreciate suggestions for someone like me who doesn't know a pinot from a merlot. Cheers!

Information Displays on Contacts

Here's something to 'look forward' to. We put ear buds in our ears for hands free but in the future we may be able to keep our eyes on the road too, while we fiddle with our information gadgets.

Engineers at the University of Washington are creating a contact lens with an embedded electronic circuit and lights. The display would be superimposed on your view of the world so you could mapquest, play games, ebay or whatever else you absolutely need to do, while keeping sight on a real world backdrop.

The lenses have not yet been tested on humans but so far show to be safe and effective. The engineers behind the lens are intending to make the lens wireless capable and power the circuit with a small solar cell on the lens. (UV protection enforced, hopefully - see previous post.)

Amazing but not unbelievable. I'll let you know when these lenses become available in my office.... :)

UV and You

We've all seen it lately, albeit not often enough and not for very long.

The sun is starting to shine and we're spending more time outdoors to soak it in. Along with the warmth and light comes UV radiation which we know can be harmful.

The wavelength for visible light ranges from 400nm to 700nm. The wavelength for UV radiation is shorter and therefore contains more energy which can cause molecular changes. You've probably heard of UVC (100nm to 280nm), UVB (280nm to 315nm) and UVA (315nm to 380nm). UVC for the most part, is filtered by the atmosphere. That leaves UVA and UVB to worry about.

UV damage of the eye can come in the form of photokeratitis (sunburn of the eye), pterygium (thickening of the tissue on the white of the eye), cataracts (clouding of the lens) and cancer of the lids and globe.

How you can minimize UV exposure:

• Wear protective eyewear : make sure that both your tinted and untinted spectacles specifically protect against UV radiation. Some contact lenses now can block over 90% of UV rays. Make sure you are fit in the most protective materials available.
• Wear a brimmed hat. This can block up to 50% more UV light.
• Avoid mid-day sun when UV rays are strongest.
• Take these precautions even if the sun isn't shining. Clouds don't block out UV.

Otherwise, have fun in the sun!

Behind schedule!

Wow. How did I let two months go by without a post? I had a pretty good record there for a while though :P

Work has been busy - I finally left the job at the mall yesterday and had a big celebration from which I'm still on a high. That means more time at Eagle Eye, my home away from home.

For those of you who have visited Eagle Eye recently, we have had very limited hours due to the optician, Melaina, dealing with some personal challenges and me being committed to work at other locations. I apologize to anyone who hasn't received prompt attention. We're always devoted to giving the best service and appreciate your understanding.

Otherwise, I'm working on the next vision tip. If anyone has any requests, email me at eyedocto@gmail.com.

Enjoy the blossoms and the sun - with your UV-protected eyewear on.

Computers and Eyestrain - the way we use our eyes these days

With all the time we spend in front of our computer monitors these days, we don't realize how much strain we put on our eyes and how simple it can be to keep our eye muscles happy.

Unless you are nearsighted in the exact degree that matches the distance of your computer, your focusing muscles are working when you look up close without additional correction. Eyes were made to focus, but not for hours at a time as most of us are doing, both at work, then once we get home, too.

Signs and Symptoms of Eyestrain:

• Soreness - eyes, neck, headache
• Irritation - burning, itching, watery eyes
• Blurred vision - delayed focus when shifting your gaze between objects, after-images, blurred objects or edges, sensitivity to light

Relief:

• Take eye breaks! We shouldn't be slouched over staring at one distance for more than 20 minutes at a time. Follow the 20/20/20 rule: Every 20 minutes, look at least 20 feet away for 20 seconds. This allows the focusing muscles to relax.

• Take full body breaks! Your mind and body deserve and need a break, too. Try to stand up and walk around then close your eyes for a few minutes every hour. Here's a relaxing exercise from the mayoclinic website: Place your elbows on your desk, palms facing up; let your weight fall forward and your head fall into your hands; position your head so that your eyebrows rest on the base of your palms with your fingers extended toward your forehead. Close your eyes and take a deep breath through your nose; hold it for 4 seconds, then exhale. Continue for 15 to 30 seconds. Do this several times a day.

• Blink! When we concentrate and stare, we tend not to blink as much. The average person should blink about 12 times a minute. Without a fresh, full tear layer, eyes sting, feel scratchy, and get red. If eyes still feel dry, use preservative-free artificial tears every hour or so, before symptoms begin, to refresh your eyes and prevent the irritation from beginning, when some damage has already been done.

• Wear computer glasses! Using the right prescription strength for the computer distance can relieve your muscles. These glasses or adjusted for that particular distance and would need to be removed to see across the room. Anti-glare coatings can be applied to reduce glare from the monitor.

• Optimize your environment! Keep the top of your screen at eye level or below so you look slightly downward at the monitor. This can help prevent sore neck. Keep your keyboard and reading material directly in front or adjacent to your monitor to reduce the need to adjust focus. Use plenty of light and direct it to reduce glare. Check for glare with your monitor off. The worst glare usually comes from light directly above or behind you. Wipe the dust off your screen regularly and consider using a glare-reducing screen.

If you experience further discomfort, schedule an appointment for a thorough evaluation.