Diabetic Eye Problems

In simple terms, diabetes is a chronic health condition that adversely impacts how the human body transforms food into energy.

The food we consume is broken down by our body and transformed into glucose (sugar) to be released into our bloodstream. When the sugar increases, the pancreas is signalled to release insulin which acts as a bridge by enabling sugar in the blood to be used by the cells in our body for energy.

In the case of diabetes, however, the body is incapable of either producing enough insulin or effectively making use of it. With inadequate insulin or when the cells stop responding to the insulin, the sugar level in our blood spikes, and over time leads to serious health conditions such as heart problems, kidney diseases, and diabetic eye problems.

While there isn’t a cure for diabetes, losing weight, consuming a nutrition-rich and healthy diet, and maintaining an active lifestyle have been known to have a significant positive impact on it.

Diabetic eye disease is a group of eye problems affecting diabetic patients. These problems include cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, or macular edema. Even in milder illnesses such as sore eyes, diabetes could be playing a role. The issue with eye problems due to diabetes is that if it is left unchecked, it might lead to blurry vision or even blindness in extreme cases. To steer clear of such problems, diabetic patients must lead a healthy lifestyle, get regular eye check-ups, and invest in health insurance to take care of the associated costs.

The reason why regular eye check-ups are stressed is that often, the symptoms of eye diseases (arising from diabetes) develop a lot later. With a full eye examination, the doctor can detect and treat the problem early. This is a particular blessing when one considers that diabetes is the leading cause of blindness in adults between the ages of 20 to 74.

Here are five common eye problems stemming from diabetes:

It may not be time for those glasses just yet. With diabetes, it might be a temporary problem wherein a spike in your blood sugar might lead to swelling of your lens. This, in turn, impairs your ability to see clearly. To get your vision back to normal, doctors recommend getting your blood sugar back to its normal range, which is:

• Before meals: 70-130 milligrams per deciliter, or mg/dL and
• 1-2 hours after meals: less than 180 mg/dL

However, the vision is not restored to normalcy immediately. It may take up to three months for your eyes to fully recover.

One of the primary causes of eye impairment in diabetic patients is cataracts. Just as with a camera, the lens in your eye helps you focus on things around you. Developing a cataract is like having to see through a smudged camera lens. While cataracts might develop in any individual, people with diabetes tend to develop them at a younger age, and their situation worsens quicker. A surgery will replace the blurry cataract with an artificial one.

Diabetes doubles the chances of getting glaucoma which can cause loss of vision and even blindness if left untreated for long. The symptoms of glaucoma will vary depending on the kind of glaucoma the patient is suffering from. It occurs when the pressure builds up in the back of your eye, and the fluid fails to drain as it should. This damages the nerves and the blood vessels, subsequently impairing vision. Treatment includes medication, eye drops, and even surgery or laser eye treatments to lower eye pressure.

The retina of your eye is a light-sensitive layer of nerve tissue that receives images and shares them with the brain through the optic nerve as electric signals. Diabetic retinopathy is caused by damage to the small blood vessels in the retina due to high blood sugar levels. If not detected and treated in time, the patient can go blind. There are different types of diabetic retinopathy:

• Maculopathy: This eye disease affects the macula. It occurs when the blood vessels enlarge to compensate for the blocked blood vessels, only to leak. When this leaked fluid builds up at the macula and into the retina, it leads to swelling.

• Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy: When the cells in the back of your eye don’t get enough oxygen, newer blood vessels start to grow. These fragile vessels often bleed into the vitreous. With limited bleeding, the patient might see only a few dark floaters. However, with excessive bleeding, the vision may be entirely blocked.

When your blood glucose rises, diabetes can negatively impact your vision. In the short term, it is unlikely that you will lose your vision. But if your blood sugar remains high for a long time, then it damages the blood vessels in the back of your eyes. With a yearly eye examination, any possible eye problem can be detected early and treated effectively to prevent further damage to the eyes.

An early investment in a medical insurance plan is a wise decision. It is because if you purchase health insurance after you are diagnosed with diabetes, you may not get coverage until a few years. In that scenario, diabetes will be considered a pre-existing disease and will have a waiting period on it.

So, if you do not have health insurance, you can easily get one from Tata AIG. On our website, you can compare health insurance policies and choose the one that fits your requirement. Further, it is always a good idea to fortify your cover with a diabetes add-on as this will help cover not only the hospitalisation expenses but also cover doctor’s fees, diagnosis tests, and the cost of treatment.

If you are experiencing blurry vision or sore eyes in diabetes, you should consult your doctor and control your diabetes. Adopting healthy food habits and physical activities can help you control diabetes, but it is still recommended to get a medical insurance plan for you and your family.