Get Your Eyes Checked After a Diabetes Diagnosis

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Get Your Eyes Checked After a Diabetes Diagnosis

One of the lesser known side effects of diabetes is the damage it can cause to your eyes. This might go unnoticed at first or dismissed as a result of just getting older, because type 2 diabetes typically begins in your 40s.

But instead of dismissing it, get your eyes checked. Diabetes is a condition in which your blood sugar levels are too high due to a lack of insulin. Due to the high levels of sugar in your blood, a lot of little things in your body can be damaged from the blood that runs through them.

This is what causes the damage in your eye as a diabetic. The back wall of your eyes are lined with a tissue referred to as the retina, which is the light-sensitive portion of your eye.

Any damage to your retina can cause severe sight loss, as those portions of your eye may no longer be able to sense light. Temporary retina burns can be brought on by looking at lights, but more permanent damage is brought on by diabetes.

Many tiny blood vessels run through your retina in order to keep the tissue healthy and functioning. As a result of diabetes, these miniscule blood vessels can be damaged by the excess sugar, leading to a loss of vision.

This condition is known as diabetic retinopathy. Some of the more common symptoms of this condition are blurred vision and little spots that don’t quite look right. Retinopathy isn’t the only eye damage you’re at risk for as a diabetic.

Diabetics can be up to five times more likely than the average person to develop cataracts. A cataract is a clouded lens in your eye. A regular lens is vital for sight, because it allows you to focus on different things, but it can get clouded.

The symptoms of cataracts are fairly simple, you’ll begin to have more clouded and blurry vision. As it gets worse, you may even be able to see the clouded lens in your eye, as one pupil will be noticeably lighter.

Luckily, cataracts are easily fixed with cataract surgery. These conditions apply for all forms of diabetes. If any of these conditions go unchecked, they can cause permanent and severe vision loss. It’s recommended that diabetics get their eyes checked at least annually, so they can catch any of these early signs before they develop any further.