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Question:  My neighbor is going blind from  macular degeneration,  for which she has been told their is no  help.  Is that true? Can it be prevented?
Answer:  Macular degeneration is a common cause of vision  loss in people  65 years of age or older. In its mild form it  often  reduces vision so much that the patient is unable to drive a  car. In  its  serious form it can lead to virtual blindness.  In  many instances  there can be some help with natual treatments , but the best help is  prevention.  Let me discuss some possible prevention and then we  will  talk about treatment. Macular degeneration has been linked to several things we can surely avoid. These are cigarette smoking, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, diabetes and possibly ultraviolet light (U.V.). What can you do? Give up smoking. As for cardiovascular disease (heart & circulatory disease); we all know what the surgeon general recommends. Cut down on many "bad" fats, processed foods and sugar. Increase your intake of fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grain products, depending on your body type (though with age most need to restrict carbohydrates of all types). Aerobic exercise is also of great importance. At least 1 hour of walking daily, can often slow or even reverse some macular degeneration, in my clinical experience!  Get a U.V. protective coating on your glasses.  Also take a good ANTIOXIDANT and OMEGA 3 OILS, daily.  There is lots more to keeping your eye sight because macular degeneration is a SYMPTOM of your body failing to maintain your eyes health. This is the holistic approach. If you really want to keep your eye sight and you suffer from this disease, please see us or another eye doctor who offers the holistic approach.

As for treatment in the serious "leaky" type, laser treatment sometimes helps to slow the progression of vision loss, though it is at the expense of other retinal tissues.  . For this to work it must be identified within a few days of the onset.  For this reason it is very important that people who have any form of macular degeneration have regular eye exams (usually 2x per year) and screen themselves daily with a simple chart called an Amsler grid. Put this on your refrigerator door, it takes less than a minute each day to use.  Everyone over 45 years of age should have a yearly exam for this reason alone!  Recently there is a new medical approach that involves injections into the eye which can prove beneificial for wet macular degeneration but it carries a significan trisk too!