6 Tips to Reduce Your Risk of Cataracts

Cataracts are a clouding of the lenses of your eyes that can be ignored and worked around for awhile, but as any eye doctor in Jacksonville, FL could tell you, eventually most people who develop cataracts will need to have surgery. Seniors are the most at-risk group for developing this fairly common eye condition, and, in time, untreated cataracts can cause blindness. However, the best treatment for many conditions is generally preventing the problem from developing in the first place. The following are six strategies you can take to make your eyes healthier and reduce your risk of developing cataracts.

Stop Smoking

Just as eating the right foods can help you to reduce the general types of problems that can afflict your eyes, any eye doctor in Jacksonville, FL would tell you that you also want to avoid smoking. Smoking is one of the worst things you can do to your body, and one more way it will harm you is by causing a thyroid-related eye disease. Smoking can even contribute to macular degeneration. With so much tissue in the eye, you want to make sure that it is protected as much as possible from first, second and even third hand smoke — the odor that emanates from a smoker's breath and clothes for up to a few hours after the last cigarette.

Wear Sunglasses Regularly

Sunglasses are dollar for dollar the least expensive and most effective way you can protect your eyes from a serious and persistent issue known as ultraviolet light and its wide-ranging harmful effects. For all of the press coverage that x-rays and other forms of radiation receive, over-exposure to UV light from the sun is dangerous because it causes persistent damage daily. Before you visit the eye doctor in Jacksonville, FL, remember to wear a pair of UV-blocking sunglasses when outdoors.

Maintain a Healthy Body Weight

Keeping a healthy weight is a great idea for a lot of reasons. While cataracts do not form as a direct result of being overweight, any eye doctor in Jacksonville, FL would tell you that being overweight will make you more likely to develop diabetes and other vascular diseases. Since any kind of vascular disease or diabetes is a risk factor for developing cataracts down the road, maintaining a healthy weight and staying trim could help you avoid cataracts and a whole host of other illnesses.

Monitor Your Health All the Time

Going to the eye doctor in Jacksonville, FL for regular eye exams is just one of the components of keeping yourself in good condition. In addition, getting regular exercise is a crucial way for you to stay in shape and reduce the vascular problems that tend to lead to cataract development. With so many different ways to exercise, you are limited only by the amount of time you are willing to put in and your creativity when choosing to engage in a new regimen. You can weigh yourself and use the machinery that is available at most gyms to establish a baseline of your body fat percentage. Once you know how much body fat you are carrying, you can work on reducing this amount and getting into better condition.

Investigate Cloudy Vision Promptly

When a problem comes up, it is always prudent to schedule an appointment with your eye doctor as quickly as possible. If your vision becomes cloudy or dim, particularly at night time, this may be attributable to cataracts in the early stages. If you go to your doctor at the first signs of a problem that carries a similar symptom to cataracts, getting them taken care of may take as little as 15 minutes. If you check out the problem early, you can get it taken care of without having to worry or suffer from a serious onset of this condition.

Get Your Eyes Checked

A lot of people wonder why they should bother getting an eye exam, and this is one of the reasons. Just as with many other kinds of medical issues, initially, it can be very hard to notice whether you have a problem or not. With a regular routine of yearly eye exams, you can know before you even develop symptoms whether the conditions for cataracts exist

With cataracts, an ounce of prevention is the same as a pound of cure. Since many people are nervous about anything that affects their eyes, you need to remember that positive general health habits are great contributing factors to avoiding cataracts in the first place. From there, get your eyes checked and follow up on any unusual symptoms promptly.