Cataracts and Nutrition – InVite Health Podcast, Episode 446
cataracts
InViteⓇ Health Podcast, Episode hosted by Amanda Williams, MPH
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One of the leading causes of blindness throughout the world also happens to be one of the most preventable causes of blindness and that is cataracts. Today I want to talk a little bit about what cataracts are, different nutrients that are beneficial when it comes to targeting this issue and the lifestyle modifications that can make an impact when it comes to eye health.†
How common are cataracts?
In the United States, we see that about 25 million people over the age of 40 years old have been affected by cataracts. With every decade as we get older, the risk of developing this issue starts to go up. There is a strong connection between cataract formation and underlying health conditions, so I want to talk about all of these different factors today.†
When it comes to cataracts, we know that this is a big problem. About half of Americans will have cataracts by the time they reach 75 years old. There seems to be a trend that maybe women are slightly more at risk for this issue than men, but at the end of the day, this doesn’t really matter because you want to be able to target those cataracts.†
The reason why we recognize cataracts as being one of the common causes of blindness worldwide is generally because many people come across these different barriers to getting cataract surgery. That’s why it’s important to be mindful of the lifestyle modifications and nutrients that can help support healthy vision.†
Ways to support your vision
We know that poor nutrition and following the Standard American Diet is a leading cause of this issue because it is driving up glycation. This puts diabetics at a greater risk for developing this problem.†
Conventional treatment for cataracts is surgery and this has been shown time and time again to clean this problem up. The issue is that oftentimes, people are still not doing the right things afterwards in terms of lifestyle modifications and making sure that they are taking in the appropriate nutrients. They have to make sure that they are wearing their sunglasses when they’re out in the sun. They should also have a high intake of omega-3 fatty acids and powerful antioxidants, as well as nutrients that target glycation. Oxidative stress is another driver of this issue, so we should also be thinking about nutrients that target that.†
Let’s look at some nutrients that target glycation and oxidative stress. This includes Vitamin C, alpha-lipoic acid, N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and carnosine. These are all nutrients that we should be automatically thinking about when we hear the words oxidative stress partnered up with glycation. Being able to do our due diligence when it comes to targeting cataracts is something that needs to be expressed more and more.†
In this episode, Amanda Williams, MPH discusses cataracts, one of the leading causes of blindness throughout the world. She goes into depth about factors that impact eye health and also recommends specific nutrients to help with this issue.†
Key Topics:
- Risk factors for this issue
- Signs and symptoms of cataracts
- Details on nutrients for eye health
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